HUNDREDS of mostly black clad mourners, including President Cyril Ramaphosa, congregated at the Bryanston Methodist Church on a gray mid-week summer day of January 10, 2024 for the Special Provincial Official Funeral Service of the late South African photojournalism legend, Dr Peter Magubane.
Grosvenor Road off Winnie Mandela Drive was turned into a hive of activity as a lengthy cortege comprising the deceased’s extended family, the presidential cavalcade and a squad of blue lights-flashing Traffic Police escort vehicles disrupted both morning and afternoon peak hour traffic patterns.
With both the M1 and N1 motorways, as well as main intersections, momentarily blocked off for the uninterrupted passage of the family procession from Ormonde to Bryanston – the occasion was evidently a unique one for onlookers to behold!
Ahead of the farewell unto the distinguishable white-haired nonagenarian who passed on, on New Year’s Day, President Ramaphosa had declared a Provincial Official Funeral Category 2 in his honour – which included elements of South African Police Service ceremonial honours “reserved for distinguished persons specifically designated by the President of South Africa on request by the premier of a province.”
Whilst alive, the South African government’s regard for Magubane’s contributions unto society had extended to him being bestowed with the Order of Luthuli in silver, in 2017 and the Order for Meritorious Service Class II, in 1999.
The send-off moment had begun with a valedictory service held at the Lakewood Estates, Ormonde home of the multi award-winning lensman’s son, Linda, where himself, his sister, South Africa’s Ambassador to Denmark, Fikile Magubane and the extended family including numerous children, grand and great-grandchildren uniformly dressed in black, had converged in the early hours of Wednesday morning before departing in a cortege escorted by police en-route to the church.
With the firmament promising rain – which eventually did fall pending the ceremony – the event had proceeded with a funeral service officiated by the General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches, Bishop Malusi Mpumlwana, and during which a selection of hymns was sung.
Of a programme jointly directed by veteran journalist, Phil Molefe and Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Zizi Kodwa, an audio-visual presentation depicting very moving and disturbing segments of Magubane’s 1976 Students Uprising portfolio was beamed from projectors within the church.
This was followed by the reading of an obituary by a relative, Vukani Magubane. Understandably lengthy, owing to the stature of the absent photographer, the obituary depicted the life of a self-made man who rose from being a driver on Drum magazine in the early 1950s to becoming a photographer who ultimately realized international acclaim.
The assembly learnt of an intrepid thorn under the bare feet of the then reigning Apartheid regime who’d hide his camera inside a hollowed-out loaf of bread to avoid detection whilst seeking to record images which would expose the atrocities of the racist system. Resuming his career unbroken after having been condemned to 586 days of solitary confinement, Magubane’s resilience resulted in him being recognized with myriad honours which, inter alia, included the Robert Capa Gold Medal, the Nat Nakasa Award for Media Integrity, 9 honorary doctorates from prestigious universities and technical colleges.
Additionally, mention was made of his having published over 20 photography books and staging exhibitions locally and internationally.
Granddaughter, Lungile, intimated that “being the granddaughter to the great Peter Magubane has lately become my favourite thing to be.” Describing him as her “favourite guy”, she quoted him as claiming that, despite being diabetic, “there was no sweet on Earth which could kill him” – whilst going on to captivate the audience about the moment her history tutor’s face was rendered white when the photojournalist paid a surprise visit to her class! An enthusiast of some of Magubane’s works, his sudden appearance had the said teacher shocked!
“Peter Magubane was gold. He was worth his weight!” Molefe bellowed at some stage in the programme whilst he invited the ilk of Snuki Zikalala, Joe Tlholoe, John Kani and Duma Ndlovu to deliver their respective tributes at the dais, in front of who’s-who who included erstwhile president, Thabo Mbeki, ex-Speaker of the National Assembly of South Africa, Max Sisulu, Elinor Sisulu, South Africa’s Ambassador to South Korea, Zenani Mandela-Dlamini, Advocate Mojanku Gumbi, Letta Mbulu, Caiphus Semenya, Peter Vundla, Mathatha Tsedu, Len Khumalo and former member of the Bang-Bang Club, Joao Silva – among many others!
Ndlovu took the congregation down memory’s lane regarding a man he first met in 1975 and went on to be incarcerated on Modderbee Prison, with songstress Abigail Kubheka briefly invigorated attendees when she belted out a ditty titled, ‘Love Make a Woman’.
Ambassadress Magubane utilized her slot to thank her brother, Linda and wife, Kate for looking after their dad in her absence.
A moment apt for the juncture occurred when photographer, Siphiwe Mhlambi (whose own career had been mentored by Magubane) led fellow photographers in the performing of the shutter salute (a manoeuvre in which the camera’s shutter is clicked repeatedly – equivalent of a gun salute).
In his eulogy televised live on SABC TV, Ramaphosa, who revealed that Magubane’s tome, The Vanishing Cultures of South Africa, was a favourite of his, remarked that, “we’ve come a long way from when Peter’s generation were censured.” Going on to mention an incident whereby the photographer had to hide inside a coal box whilst being pursued by police – only to re-emerge all covered in soot!
“The South Africa of today”, asserted the statesman, “is a vastly different place from the one which was a canvas of Peter Magubane’s lens.”
Came mid-afternoon after a considerable rainstorm, pallbearers carried the flag draped casket out of the church and the cortege, escort vehicle sirens wailing, made its way to the Fourways Memorial Park Cemetery for the burial segment of the day’s ceremony. Graveside, with the SAPS performing the ceremonial services, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi symbolically handed over a South African national flag to Linda Magubane before Bishop Mpumlwana concluded the burial rites.
All images Jacob MAWELA ( Dr Peter Magubane, depicted showing off the Robert Capa Gold medal he was awarded in 1985 for his visual reportage ‘Cry for Justice- Cry for Peace’ – Spring 2017).
