A large part of ACTSA Scotland's activity at present is giving support to the Nelson Mandela Scottish Memorial Foundation, which arose out of the past work of the Anti-Apartheid Movement Scottish Committee and ACTSA Scotland. The Foundation was formally registered in December 2016 as a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) with the purpose of increasing awareness of the life, work and legacy of Nelson Mandela, of the connections between him and Scotland, and of other links between Scotland and South Africa over the years. A major early objective is to fund and erect a statue of Mandela in Nelson Mandela Place in Glasgow in recognition of that having been the first city in the world to grant him the Freedom of the City (in 1981), an initiative that was very significant at the time. Work with schools is another key activity, and a resource pack commisssioned from the West of Scotland Development Education Centre (WOSDEC) was published in March 2020, online and on paper, under the title "When Mandela Danced in the Square". This introduces young people to the history and connects Mandela's example to the ongoing, never-ending struggle for racial and social justice. Available for free download at bit.ly/WhenMandela
The Foundation is an independent charity but ACTSA Scotland has agreed to work closely with it in achieving these objectives. More information can be found at mandelascottishmemorial.org
The ACTSA Scotland Book Appeal has now come to an end, after gathering, sorting and sending half a million books to schools in Eastern Cape Province of South Africa over 20 years.
In normal times, other ACTSA Scotland activities continue, including stalls at conferences and other events to spread information about Southern Africa and to assist community projects there. The Covid 19 situation has, of course, led to the suspension of much of this work in the meantime, but it will resume as and when that becomes possible.
Death of Archbishop Desmond Tutu - 26th Dec., 2021. ACTSA Scotland sent the following message of condolence to the Tutu family:
I write to offer our heartfelt condolences to Mrs. Tutu and all the family on the death of Archbishop Tutu. From our previous history as the Anti-Apartheid Movement in Scotland we remember with thanksgiving his visits here over past decades and with a variety of hosts, where he brought to life the wicked nature and devastating human effects of apartheid more vividly than we could ever hope to do. After South Africa's political transition he continued, of course, to serve and inspire and to agitate for the much greater and more difficult transition in attitudes and in commitment to the building of a better South Africa and a better world. We were privileged to have a video message of support from him for our 20-year long appeal in Scotland for books for school libraries in South Africa, and were grateful for that free giving of his precious time to a quite minor and local project.
We join the people of South Africa and of the wider world in mourning the end of his physical life and work, but his history and his influence will continue to inspire both present and future generations.
All best wishes.
John Nelson
Secretary
ACTSA Scotland (Action for Southern Africa) - successor organisation to the Anti-Apartheid Movement, Scottish Committee
A statement by the Nelson Mandela Foundation in South Africa can be found at fal.cn/3kUL8 , and one from the Desmond Tutu Trust at https://tutuiptrust.org/the-world-has-lost-a-lodestar-and-doting-parent/