As Thekwane High School prepares for its centennial celebration of academic excellence this weekend, alumni members have lauded the institution’s significant contribution to the liberation struggle in the 1970s.
Located in Plumtree, Matabeleland South, near the Botswana border, Thekwane High School was a fertile recruiting ground for those seeking to join the liberation fight before independence.
Dr Myengwa Joshua Madida Nyoni, a member of Thekwane Alumni Association, shared some of the school’s illustrious history with CITE, particularly highlighting individuals who participated in Zimbabwe’s war for independence.
“The school had its fair share of involvement in the liberation struggle. Being on the border with Botswana, it served as a springboard or recruitment ground for those crossing over to join the freedom fight. In 1971, students from the senior classes were arrested for demonstrating against colonial machinations during Lord Goodman’s talks,” Dr. Nyoni recounted.
“In 1977, some 35 boys crossed the border to join the liberation struggle. In 1978, over 400 students (boys and girls) were led across the border into Botswana at night, at gunpoint, to join the liberation effort, accompanied by L.B. Khumalo and nine other teachers.
“Although the majority were returned to the school after negotiations with Botswana authorities, a number opted to remain in Botswana and subsequently proceeded for military training in Mozambique, Zambia, and elsewhere. Some were incarcerated when caught trying to join the boys.”
In 1985, the then headmaster of Thekwane, Luke Khumalo, and his wife Jean, were shot dead on the school premises.
According to a report from Amnesty International, Khumalo was a supporter of ZAPU, the party typically associated with “dissidents” by the authorities at the time.
His attackers, described by the government as “dissidents,” were reportedly wearing combat uniforms identified by eyewitnesses as those of the paramilitary People’s Militia.
