Let’s face up to Zondo Road renaming facts
To have a street named after you in honour of a military act, you should have done something courageous.
EDITOR – The letter by ‘Athlone Park resident‘ regarding Zondo Road in the 12 June edition of the South Coast Sun refers.
The comments made by the writer are possibly of the stupidest comments I have yet seen in favour of Andrew Zondo, and defy any logic.
The writer says that “he deserves the honour”, and “don’t be naive – be honest and face the facts”. So, “Athlone Park Resident”, let us not be naive, and let’s be honest and face the facts.
It is indeed possible that the atrocities committed at Vlakplaas were worse than terrorism, but I fail to see how this makes Zondo a hero who should be honoured by having a road named after him. I am not aware of a single road in this country named ‘Vlakplaas Avenue’ or ‘Eugene de Kock Street’, so what exactly is your point? Should we say that the atrocities committed in the 1970s in the townships where people set each other on fire in public was worse than the atrocities committed at Vlakplaas and therefore there should now be a street called ‘Vlakplaas Avenue’? I think not.
Next, to have a street named after you in honour of a military act, you should have done something courageous. To be courageous you must have committed an act in the face of the very real possibility of danger where you knowingly could lose your life or face serious personal injury – fact. I know people from the previous liberation organisations who have the physical scars of being in battle, yet there is not a single street named after these real heroes – fact.
Zondo planted a bomb in a shopping centre, and ran away from the danger of being personally injured or killed – fact. He was never in any personal danger – fact. Zondo did not care who he killed in the explosion – fact. Therefore Zondo was a coward – fact. The renaming of Kingsway to Zondo Road is thus an insult to the real heroes of the liberation struggle – fact.
I personally feel the decision by the authorities to name Kingsway after Zondo Road was cruel and suspect that it was specifically done to cause anguish among the residents of Amanzimtoti, and not to honour Zondo.
If you, Athlone Park Resident, still think that Zondo was a hero who should be honoured by having a road named after him, then you have very low standards when it comes to choosing your heroes.
STEVE THE WONDERER
