THE FIGHTING FIFTEEN AND PRISON GANGS IN THE REAL FOUR CORNERS AT POLLSMOOR MAXIMUM PRISON In 1987, Umkhonto We Sizwe Commander Ashley Forbes and 14 other revolutionary soldiers inclusive of Leon Scott, Nazeem Lowe, Peter Jacobs, Niclo Pedro, Jeremy Vearey, Wally Rhoode, etc., were awaiting trial on terrorism charges in Pollsmoor Maximum prison. Throughout this period, before leaving for Robben Island, we were respected as Mandelas soldiers and even held in high regard as men of blood, an honourary title only reserved for members of the 27-gang.Three incidents at the time demonstrated the reverence with which the numbers gangs regarded us. One involved a decision by the leadership of the 26, 27, and 28 gangs in B-Section of Pollsmoor prison to kill prisoner named Cliffie a month before his release because they believed he had stolen from us. As soon as the prison authorities heard of this they woke us one night at midnight and asked us to cancel the contract. We did not know what they were talking about but some of us accompanied them to a cell where the gang leaders who had made the decision in question were held. There we thanked the numbers gang leaders for their gesture of honour and requested that they leave the matter to us as soldiers to deal with. They accepted our proposal and Cliffie lived to see another day. Another incident involved a particularly violent member of the 27 gang called Wolf, who, according to numbers gang leaders, was permanently bloed dronk and uncontrollable. At the time Wolf was awaiting transfer to death row after he had participated in ritual prison gang murder in which he slit the throat of an enemy with a minora blade, drank his enemys blood, and ate his heart. One day Warrant Officer Brandt (ex-President Mandelas warden) approached Ashley Forbes (MK Commander of our detachment) it speak to Wolf. Apparently Wolf had stabbed his his fellow cell mate and broken the toilet pot in his cell resulting in other prisoners having to be moved and him being chained to the cell door permanently. Ashley Forbes calmed down Wolf who later hero worshipped him and followed our terrorism trial actively by reading the Grassroots and other newspapers which other gang members had smuggled into prison for him to keep him happy. A third experience involved a 28-Gang General called Roberto Dos Santos, whose cell was well stocked with law text books and journals who had the title of tronk lawyer. It was rumored that his legal advice had saved several prisoners from death row and that even the wardens consulted with him on legal matters. Dos Santos took a keen interest in our terrorism trial and made a point of regularly advising some of us on how to deal with cross-examination which he followed daily in the several newspapers. At some point he even supplied us with newspapers and such as the Weekly Mail, Grassroots, SASPU National, etc. At this stage you might be wondering where this terrorist is going with this. The point of it all is that nothing and no one is beyond redemption or their own humanity, no matter what the numbers gangs try to make them. You just have to expose them to experiences which create the opportunities and conditions for their humanity to be exercised and reinforced, and redemption will follow. And this is the most valuable lesson we can learn from both the movie Four Corners, and the very real experience of the Fighting Fifteen in the real Four Corners of Pollsmoor Maximum prison.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Apr 2014 07:50:46 +0000
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