Imbali yeGlen Grey eTambookieland

Phambi kokungena nzulu emxholweni, iLesseyton gxebe iNdlovukazi apho bekudityenwe kwimvuselelo yeSite kwinkonzo yamaWesile ngomhla wesithathu kwekaCanzibe 2018, yenye yeenkonzo ezinembali esikakhulu ngexesha lobandlululo.

Abantu belali noMasipala weEnoch Mgijima kwiChris Hani District bazibophelele ekubambeni izandla noosomashishini nabo bonke abanomdla kuvuselelo oluquka uphuhliso lweli ziko ngenjongo yokulibuyisela kwisimo elali kulo ngaphambili.

ILesseyton yamiswa njengeMission Station yeWesleyan Missionary Society ngo1847 noRev Josephy Cox Warner, ingekabikho idolophu yaseKomani eyamiswa ngo1853. Imizi ebisele imile ke apha ngowakwaKomani, umThembu apho kumi khona ngoku idolophu ethiywe ngomzi lowo wakwaKomani, nowakwaBonkolo umGcina isibonda sendawo, apho kukho idama elathiywa ngomzi lowo wakwaBonkolo (Bonkolo Dam).

Kunecala lembali yale ndawo ekungangenwanga nzulu kuyo, kukwakho amangcwaba asabonakalayo anxulumanisa eli ziko ngqo nale mbali yaseGlen Gray anengcwaba likaRev. Wesleyn Hurt, CA Griffths, elikaRev Joseph Cox Warner alikho lona apha, waswelekela endleleni eya eKapa ngaseBalfour, uMr Warner wayekwalilungu lomzi wakwaStanford, eyiMissionary apha eTambookieland, ebekwangumhlobo omkhulu kaMthikrakra kaNgubengcuka kubaThembu bemfuduko.

Ngo1853 uJC Warner waqeshwa eburhulumenteni nguSir George Gray woRhulumente wobandlululo ukuba abe ngummeli wesizwe sabaThembu (Tambookie Agent), nto leyo yenza le Mission Station yayindawo yamabhunga anxamnye nenjongo yobuThixo nesiko nesithethe somzi ontsundu.

Nam andinakubabalula bonke ngemisebenzi yabo emihle okwangoku, mandonyule abagqwesa ngemisebenzi engamkelekanga kwisizwe sikaXhosa uRev. JC Warner nowosapho lakwaGriffiths kunye norhulumente wabo. Bebenentiyo engummangaliso kwiiKumkani neeNkosi zamaXhosa betshatshele kumthetho * (divide and rule) lo nto iyinto echasene kakhulu nezobuThixo eyafika yayidlakaza indlu ibisele ibumbene kaNgcwangu kaTshawe.

Kulapho ke uRhulumente wobandlululo waqala khona ukuchithachitha iXhosa State, endaweni yeeKumkani neeNkosi zabaThembu bakaXhosa namaXhosa, wamilisela ezisenyongweni kuye de wamilisela nekumkani phezu kwekumkani ngendlovu iyangena ekhankasela inkxaso khona ukuze athathe umhlaba lo neenkomo zoobawo lula.

Umbhali okwalilungu losapho lakwaJC Warner lithi “Glen Grey was a seat of administration and a mission station combined,” uqhubekeka athi “UMtirara, the paramount chief of the Thembu tribe who had great confidence in Mr Warner, feeling his end approaching, sent for him and as a dying request asked him to take care of his children and tribe.” Iqhuba imbali iphinde ithi uMtikrakra wamiliselwa (installed) njengekumkani yabaThembu bemfuduko baseRhoda ngo1840. Bagqwesa kulo msebenzi wabo kwiminyaka ephakathi ko1820-1857 nangaphaya.

AmaGcina phantsi koTyhopho, amaQwathi phantsi koNdlela, amaHala phantsi komhlolokazi uNonesi, amaNdungwane phantsi koQwesha, amaTshatshu phantsi komhlolokazi Yokazi kaMaphasa, babekwa phantsi kolawulo lukaJC Warner, waze wababoleka lo mhlaba iGlen Grey ukwangowamaTshawe kuba waye wacaphukela amaXhosa besithi sisizwe esilukhuni.

Ininzi into eyayiqhubeka apha eMission equka, isikolo sophuhliso lwezakhono kwimisebenzi yezandla, ulimo noqeqesho lwabefundisi ababe ngoompondozihlanjiwe luyinxalenye yale Cawe. Ndiyathemba kakhulu uluntu lwalapha njengoko kuza kuvuselelwa ezo nkonzo luza kuxhamla.

Ibe ngumqweno ke wokuba nabani onenye imbali ngale ndawo aze nayo ngaphambili, nam ndiyangqinelana nabo khona ukuze nesizukulwana esizayo siyazi yonke into eyayiqhubeka apha, nendima eyadlalwa ngabefundisi abamisa le Cawe.

Izithethi ziye zachaphazela nobuyiso lwemihlaba kubanikazi bawo ngaphandle kwembuyekezo, nangoompondozihlanjiwe babefundisi, abaqeqeshwa kweli ziko.

Nabefundisi abake banyathela apha abanjengoWB Rubusana umbhali wencwadi engudizamahlebo ethi (Zemnk’ iinkomo Magwalandini 1906) obekwalilungu lebandla leRharhabe Church/Rhabe Church.

Abaninzi ke khange bakhankanywe abefundisi abafunde kweli ziko, ndingabalula uJantyi uMthembu kaGcaleka/Tshawe ngokobuzwe owachaphazeleka kabuhlungu kwisihelegu sikaNongqawuse esehla ngo1856-57, sisenziwa nguSir George Gray endithi mna sisihelegu sikaSir George Gray noRhulumente wakhe.

Baqala bafunda inkolo yethu bayazi ukuba iqhuba njani, kanti licebo lokutshabhisa, ukucudulela nokukhukulisa inkolo yamXhosa, ubukhosi, nokoxutha umhlaba wabo khona ukuze bayokucela kubo imisebenzi.

Esi sihelegu kuthiwa sesikaNongqawuse sehla ngexesha likaSarhili noJantjie, eWestern Thembuland/Tambookieland. Emva kweso sehlo uJantyi uye wayokucela umsebenzi ehamba nomfazi wakhe ebeleke usana lwakhe, ethwaxekile yaye ophuke umphefumlo kukutshatyalaliselwa nokoxuthelwa umhlaba nemfuyo yakhe ngobuqhinga, wafikela kulo mzi wakwaStanford, apho bekukho noonongendi abanoAunt Mary behlala apho eMission, uzibonakalisile ukuba uyinkokheli eligorha, elikhalipha, ekrelekrele, uye wafunda eqala phantsi de wagcotyelwa ubufundisi, waba ngumfundisi wenkonzo yamaWesile.

Eyona nto ibuhlungu yeyokuba lo mntu ndithetha ngaye imbali yakhe khange ishicilelwe ngoMr Theal nabanye ababhali ngenjongo kodwa andothukanga nto kuba babe yinto enye.

KuSir George Grey norhulumente yayi sisicwangciso sabo okokuba ilizwe lamaXhosa liyokoxuthwa lonke libe phantsi korhulumente. Iziphumo zomzamo karhulumente kaSir George Grey ngoNongqawuse kwaye kwabulawa iinkomo eziyi 400 000, i150 000 yamaXhosa yasala ingoodingezweni nomhlaba wabo uyi600 000 hekthare kuphela.

Ngokopolotiko imikhosi, ezoqoqosho namandla amaXhosa athenwa, bazinikezela kuqoqosho nakwimigaqo emiswe nguRhulumente wobandlululo.

UPierre du Toit uthi, “In no way, however, did the cattle killing make the colonial authorities depend on the Xhosa. They did not need the Xhosa in order to proceed along their way. The Xhosa controlled no commodities. This gentleman wrote on his book and made that comment proudly because he knew that they got amaXhosa where they wanted them.”

URhulumente kaSir George Grey wawoxuthela kubo lo mhlaba iGlen Grey equka iLanti, iyinxalenye yeWestern Tambookieland apho kwakumi umzi wakuloJantyi wawunika abaThembu bemfuduko ngaphandle kwemvisiswano nabemmi bendawo. Kamva kwamiliselwa iGlen Grey Act no. 25 of 1894 eyayingqale ngqo ekwehliseleni amandla nolawulo lwazo zonke iinkosi, laphela ixabiso lazo zaphantsi kweDistrict Magistrate zazinkokheli zebhunga lengingqi.

Ewe, zikhona iinkosi zabo ezibuye azakholiswa ngamasolotya athile kulo mthetho zazama ukuwulwela ndiyayihlonipha loo ndawo, kodwa iThembuland ililifa losapho lwendlu kaNgcwangu kaTshawe lo nto injalo yaye andinamathandabuzo. Izithethi zithethile zachaphazela nobuyiso lwemihlaba ngaphandle kwembuyekezo.

Kube nesithethi esithi “kucacile ukuba lo mhlaba ngowamaDlomo, amaNtande”, yimpazamo enkulu leyo, umhlaba woxuthwa kwindlu kaGcaleka/amaTshawe nguRhulumente wengcinezelo wawunika abaThembu bemfuduko/amaMfengu (Emmigrant Tambookies) ababe khokelwe yindlu kaNgubengcuka eRhode/Glen Grey abathe kamva bamnika igunya lokongamela wonke uThembu becima lo kaXhosa…

*Siqhubeka kule veki izayo