THE REAL HISTORY OF GANGSTERISM IN THE WESTERN CAPE Some time in the mid 90's I wrote a manuscript on the

history of the numbers gangs in South Africa which involved actual interviews both inside and outside of prisons in South Africa as well as old police manuscripts and reports on the issue dating as far back as 1867. Given my command of the Shalombom (26 and 27) and Ndyaza (28) gang dialects I was able to interview gang members of the number in their own language and interpret what they meant with what they said, instead of what academics might have lost in translation into English or Afrikaans. The manuscript I wrote was used as background research by Johnny Steinberg, who also interviewed me for his book titled 'The Number'. During the next few posts I will be discussing excerpts from my manuscript titled 'Nongoloza's Legacy : Prison and Street Gangs in the Western Cape', to separate the political nonsense and ignorance about the problem from the facts as seen through the eyes of the 'Number' and official records. To dispel the current myths that this phenomenon suddenly emerged at the scale of crises which it is now it is significant to note the following for the record from a statement by the then District Commandant for the East Rand, Inspector M.A Hartigan, who wrote to the then Secretary of the Transvaal Police on 22 June 1912 pleading for assistance with the gang problem : - "Nongoloza's army has now attained a numerical strength and an organisation sufficient enough to warrant its receiving prompt and energetic attention". However, as is often the case today, debate around who should deal with this problem often reflected racist prejudice against black (inclusive) police officers who shared the 'racial' identity of 'Nongoloza's army'. This was even more evident within the police, as expressed in the recommendation of the then Deputy Commissioner of Police to his superiors in Pretoria in January 1913 when he stated : "I do not consider that the native police officer is at present capable of dealing effectively with native criminals". Sounds familiar down here in the Cape doesn't it. Nongoloza was eventually caught after national crackdown on his gang and in 1912 the then Minister of Justice ordered that its members be transferred from the old Cinderella, Volksrust, and Point Road Prisons to Robben Island and Noordhoek prisons respectively. Much later in the early 1950's gang members were also transferred to the Belville and Simondium prisons in the Cape where other number gangs such as the 24s (air force), 25s (Pig Fives and not Big fives as commonly misnamed) and 29s (Desperadoes) who became natural enemies of the 26, 27 and 28 gangs who considered them a corruption of the true number. Although its code of conduct and subaltern culture has remained relatively intact, the original numbers gangs (26, 27, 28) as we know it have today undergone several name changes throughout its history, starting with Umkhosi We Zintaba (Regiment of the Hills) whose members then, like the 26s of today were called 'skebengos', to the anglicized 'Ninevites' and later, only in prison - the 'People of the Stone' and 26, 27 and 28 gangs respectively. However, Nongoloza @ Jan Note describes his gang best in his own words in a statement to the then Director of Prisons as follows: "I myself was Inkosi Nkulu or King. Then I had and Induna Inkulu styled Lord corresponding to the Governor General. Then I had another Lord who was looked upon as the father of us all and styled Nosala. Then I had my government who were known by numbers. I also had my Fighting General on the model of the Boer Vecht Generaal. The administration of justice was confined to a Judge for serious cases and a Landros for petty cases. The medical side was entrusted to a chief doctor or Inyanga. Further I had colonels, sergeant majors, and sergeants in charge of rank and file, the Amasoja or Shoshi - soldiers". This structure together with all other the military ranks and all the official designations of a court of law down to clerks (mabalang) and lawyers (melli), still exist unaltered and in original form in all prisons where the numbers gangs operate as well as in some number puritan gangs on the Cape Flats. To be continued - vannie Magadeni en Mafailant vannie Mapuza wat loep met sy kamandelas en mafutas in sy blou garberdine jas om djou toe te kap mettie stokkies van Mapuza SALUTE! Pakamisa wee more verre uitie Slasloekoes van Moegswane.

OOD MORNING AND HOW IS THE MIND TODAY? ORGANISED VIOLENCE AND THE NUMBER GANG SUB-CULTURE On a previous occasion I briefly explained how the numbers gangs originated and will explore this issue in greater detail in terms of the Western Cape in subsequent posts. Today I want to share a few introductory thoughts on number driven gang violence sourced from my manuscript titled 'Nongoloza's Legacy : Prison and Street Gangs in the Western Cape'. The use of violence within the numbers gangs (26, 27, and 28) is usually strictly governed by ritualistic procedure and codified conventions. Although there are exceptions to this rule, they are usually reserved for the mandated actions of 'Shozis' (soldiers/ Nqayi/ Masjalou/ Maryial Law) of the 26, 27, and 28 gangs who have to act immediately against any threat which approaches the 'Kamp' (Umkozi). Failure to act by soldiers under these circumstances amount to a disciplinary record on his 'docket' and 'vuil papiere'(a bad record). It is this type of violence by Shozis which drives most of the reactive and retaliatory violence in prison and street gangs who subscribe to the number code. In number gang terms it is said of a Shozi - 'Hy staan nag en dag op 'n pos van gevaar. Hy is altyd gebritish. Hy staan op 'n pos by die hek vannie kamp en moet alle gevarre wat na die kamp kom, same time verdallah." Even the imaginary uniform of a Shozi of the 28's, for example manifests this constant readiness for war in that it is said that it includes a 3 legged pot (bloed pot) which he kicks over with his red boots with the number 28 stamped under the sole, his khaki shirt with its three top buttons open when in war, armed with a '303 rifle' (prison mug) on his right hip and an 'asssegai' (prison sharpened spoon or makeshift shiv) on his left hip. He also has 8 gold rounds, one in the barrel of the 303 and 7 gold rounds in the magazine with an additional 20 gold rounds in an ammunition pouch, to signify that he is always ready for war (altyd gebritish). In addition to violence emanating from the mandated actions of Shozis, other prescribed wars by gang law - 'volgens die Slasloekoes (laws) van Moegswane' (rules from the years when Paul Mabasa, Mongoloza and Kilikijane lived) - are enacted according to ritual and are terminated ritually when its purpose has been achieved. The examples which follow does not include ritual violence by the 27 gang ('Holland') who are permanent 'Men of Blood', an exclusive warrior class who also mediate in conflicts between the 28 and the 26. Example 1: War in defense of 'land'. This is often waged under the rule that any threat to their land/turf/section or space within a prison cell from outsiders must be defended by blood - 'Die land vannie oemkosie moet met bloed verdedig word.' In a similar contexts, a cleansing war is as prescribed to rid gang space from those who have defiled it by their presence - 'Die land moet geskoffel word om dit skoon te maak vannie Vuil Mpatas'. Example 2 : War to declare the presence of the number in situations where the number gangs do not have control. Gang law prescribes that where a number gangster arrives in a prison controlled by 'Franse' (non gang members) or 'Vuil Mpatas ( members of the fourth camp - 'Vierde kamp' of 25s and 29s) he must first wait for 6 days (6 years to the 26) or 7 days (7 years to the 27) or 8 days (8 years to the 28) depending on his gang affiliation, after which he must draw the blood of the enemy to announce his presence. In gang terms this act is expressed as follows - 'Djy kom kry byrie point die jare gaan verby en hier is nie een broer van jou wat ry met jou nie. Nou s die nommer djy moet 'n skoot slaan en agter die berge gaan on te kyk of jou broers nie daar is nie'. 'Agter die berge van Kaslombi' refers to solitary confinement for punishment by the authorities as result of the act of violence committed. Example 3: 'Bloed volgens Nobangela' - This type of war is usually sanctioned by the full leadership of the gang (The 12 points of Number Ones) and its motive (nobangela) must be clearly understood by all in the camp. In this case the ritual demands that the war sanction is recorded by the 'mabalang' (clerk) in his book and declared officially by the General or most senior officer present ('Die

maspaal khoeza die up). Example 4: 'Skiet mettie volle nommer / Die stimelas bots'. This is a full declared war between the 26 and 28 gangs when either parties have not done what the law demands of them to do or a senior officer such as a General (Maspaal/Magadeni/ Mafailant) is attacked (die maspaal is afgeskiet) and this needs to be corrected. This war is usually resolved (korek die wrong) when both parties stop the war in prison by stabbing a warder (die bloed vannie Mapuza het salute). Outside prison amongst the more puritan number street gangs, this issue is usually agreed to by a mutual agreement on whose blood must be shed to correct the 'wrong'. Up until the early 1970's in the Western Cape the numbers gang culture was restricted to behind prison walls and mixing street gang rules with that of the number was a punishable offence according to the code. However, with the emergence of super gangs such as the Born Free Kids and Cape Town Scorpions gangs this trend changed and the former aligned itself more to the 26 orientation whereas the latter subscribed more to the 28 code in the mid to late 1970's. This was also compounded by the fact that released prisoners from both gangs and others such as the Mongrels in Hanover Park started abusing their prison gang ranks as a stamp of authority to take over the leadership of some street gangs as well as form power blocks against non-prison gang members to destroy the hegemony of 'Franse' or 'Mpatas' (non-gang members) in these gangs. It is this trend of number code affiliation amongst street gangs that has become entrenched in the codes of conduct and inter-gang wars between 26's and 28's outside today. It is these realities in the numbers gang world that often belies the integrity of so-called 'peace talks' initiated by outsiders. Numbers gangs fight for reasons not governed by our sense of morality or rules and settle matters between them on their terms subject to their own code.

RASHIED STAGGIE : ART BY THE NUMBERS - 26, 27 and 28 IMPRESSIONISM ? A portrait of Rashied Staggie adorns the front page of the City Press of Sunday 29 September 2013 as part of an article titled 'AT HOME WITH THE STAGGIES'. On closer inspection you will notice the Arabic words above Rashied's head which translates as 'The Chosen One'. Rashied's head itself is position in that of the rising sun with rays extending outwards from his profile breaking the clouds foregrounded below by Table Mountain and Table Bay viewed from the Melkbostrand side. As an art critic much significance can be read metaphorically from the visual pun of 'man' (Rashied) and 'mountain' correlative to its Afrikaans translation of 'man en berg' signify the name 'Manenberg' which is the home of the Hard Livings gang of which Rashied Staggie was the leader since the late 1970's when it was founded. As a literary critic one could attach ironic significance to the words of his daughter Nabeelah who is quoted in the article with reference to the portrait as saying: "We know our dad used to be evil. But that was a long time ago. He's not that man anymore." Nabeelah's bold statement that her father is not the man in the painting anymore might or might not be true depending on who is looking at the painting and what meaning they attach to it. I want to deal with what the painting was and what it was intended to portray for whom. This portrait is that of Rashied Staggie the 26 Gang Fighting General (Oemsasa) who is both the flagpole (Maspaal) and its bearer (maspalat). He is also its mountain (in the symbolic role of Nongidela) and its sun, the latter signifying the 26 gang starting their 'work' at sunrise (mphumalanga) with his personified light leading his soldiers (gazilams /manskappe). He is therefore literally the essence of the power and glory of the 26 gang personified, and the question that ought to concern us is whether it was still the image of this Rashied Staggie who left prison on day parole last week. Whether or not Rashied Staggie publicly denounces gangsterism and the Hard Livings gang as is rumored remains to be seen. However, a far more daunting fate is prescribed by the 26 prison gang code of in the event of Staggie denouncing his rank as a Fighting General. As described in the ritual below, it will take a lot more than mere public declarations to leave the number than a street gang. At the final stage of an intricate recruitment (tamboela) ritual a prospective member declares the following, in the case of the 26

gang, to a leadership circle (Kring van nommer twees) inlcuding the Fighting General, Captain 2, Nyangi 2 (doctor), Inspector 2 and Mabalang 2 (registration clerk and keeper of name and asset lists) - "Hier het ek gekom met my eie voete, my volle hart en volle verstand" (I came here with my own two feet, my full heart and mind). The Nyangi 2 then inspects the naked recruit and declares him medically fit for duty by way of grabbing his two arms, bending them at the elbows and announcing - "Ek breek jou krag en die van die Mpatas. Jy het een oog gehad maar van nou af het jy vier o (you were blind before to the ways of the 26 but now you can see with the eyes we have given you). Twee o is vir jouself en twee vir die Kamp (this means that the new member is given additional eyes to be alert and on guard for the gang an it's interests). Thereafter the Mabalang (clerk) records the name of the new member in his 'Makoeloen Book' and warns the new member that if he does not abide by the rules of the gang he will be dealt with and killed if he exposes the gang's secrets. The Tamboela ritual signifies the total hand over of yourself to the gang - mind, body,heart and soul. It is for this reason that the old laws of the time of Pomabaza, Nongoloza, and Kilikijane (Slasloekoes van Moegswane) refers to this Tamboela ritual as your rebirth as 'Gazilams' (blood brothers). Leaving the gang under the old rules can thus only occur when your own blood which you shared with your brothers has been shed for them. This does not always mean death, in the case of 28 gang, for example, and occurs through various officers stabbing you in strict sequence according to a specified ritual. A member who declares that he wants to leave the gang or is told by the leadership to leave is called a 'scout'. In the case of the 28 gang for example, the following ritual procedure is followed in exact sequence as prescribed by the Slasloekoes van Moegswane: - The Inspector 1 (Groenslang/C.I.D - recruitment spotter) first stabs the scout ("skiet hom uit die tent) - The General (Oemsasa/Nopepezela/Maspaal) then stabs him ("gaan haal sy uniform en wapens) - The Nyangi (Zase Moliva/doctor) then stabs him (die stamp van die Kamp word weggeskiet) - The Mabalang (clerk) stabs him (uitgeteken met bloed uit die Makoeloeboek). In interviews with prison gang members many of them express the opinion that the total loss of identity and comradeship within the brotherhood that comes with being a 'scout' and social maginalisation, is worse than the acts you have to commit, or the acts that are committed against you for leaving the gang. In the event of being released while not having left the gang, it is this need for comradeship and survival within the safety and shared welfare of the brotherhood, that often drives the need to return to the 'family' of prison, or form number identity gangs outside. I sincerely hope that for Rashied and the country's sake, that the collective resolve and principled family ethic displayed by the Staggie family in the City Press article will suppress the 26 gang Fighting General in their midst - he and them owe us as society that much.