Preserving Walmer cell ‘will keep Steve Biko’s legacy alive’

Turning Steve Biko’s holding cell into a heritage site and renaming it after the black consciousness leader would ensure that history was preserved and Biko’s legacy lives on.

That was the view of a number of members of cultural groups who held a discussion on Tuesday on how best to use the Biko cell in the Walmer police station where he was held in 1977 before his death in police custody.    

Renovations, managed by the department of public works, are under way at the police precinct but much of the work is happening around the cell.

The discussion was organised by nonprofit organisation Ezingcanjini African Heritage led by historian and cultural preservationist Simphiwe Msizi.

Msizi said the discussion about what to do with the cell had been ongoing but the organisations were invited to Tuesday’s discussion to commemorate Biko’s death on September 12.

Azanian Peoples Organisation (Azapo) regional spokesperson Phaki Mooi said they would like to see to the cell remain unchanged and would also like the police station to be named after Biko.

“We want the cell to depict what Steve Biko went through while he was detained there.

“We want people to see exactly the conditions in which he lived,” Mooi said, adding that they had no problem with cosmetic changes but had serious reservations about any structural changes.

“You must remember that up until today, no-one has ever clearly come out to say what happened to Biko.

“Declarations are that he died on the 12th but we know he died on the 11th.

“We are not fighting about that but we are saying that things that involve his heritage should be kept in their original form.

“We had a serious problem when we went to Biko’s gravesite in King William’s Town and we found the grave had completely changed to something we did not recognise.

“We feel he would also not be happy with having a part of his heritage modified and modernised, so we would not like the cell to be modernised as well,” Mooi said.

A member of the Motherwell Hebrew nation, Chosen First Fruits Seemkhei, said the most important legacy that Biko left behind was the lesson that the mind was a powerful tool.

“That is the greatest preservation but historical sites give us a concrete idea of the man who possessed those ideas.

“We are not too sensitive about the renovations of the cell but I do say that those who are intricately involved need to make a decision on what work needs to be done on the cell.”

A handful of pupils from Masifunde Learner Development were also attended and their teacher Fundile Makhosi said it was important for the next generation to be enlightened on Biko’s story.

“We wanted them to learn more and understand more the significance of this cell to the community of Walmer and also for them to learn what is the link that Steve Biko had with the western part of the Eastern Cape,” Makhosi said.

Public works official Ian Mey said the department was sensitive to heritage and respected the calls to leave the cell as it was.

“The cell was painted before and there are even some artworks on the wall but there is also water damage to the walls.

“Our proposal was to repair the cell to the full extent and that would include plastering and repainting but in terms of making sure that the cell is not in use to detain any people was quite clear even to the police,” Mey said.

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