Between the Nile and the struggle

Morley Nkosi recalls exile in Cairo, where cramped rooms, African solidarity and global politics shaped the uncertain journey to freedom

- Morley Nkosi

The African Association had offices for different liberation movements in various countries. There were representatives' offices for South Africans, South West Africans, Southern and Northern Rhodesians, Ugandans, and others.

Geoff [Geoffrey Mokoka, a PAC member from Sophiatown] and I inquired about the representatives of liberation movements from South Africa. We were told that there were two representatives from the African National Congress (ANC).

It was quite early in the morning and they had not yet arrived, so we waited outside their office. The PAC did not have an office and had no representatives either.

We did not wait long before the two ANC representatives arrived. We did not know them, nor did they know us, but because we were South African refugees, they took us into their care. We gave them a full account of who we were and how we had arrived in Cairo. They confirmed that there was no PAC representative at that time but that they would take us in nonetheless. The two ANC representatives were Mzwai Piliso and Ambrose Makiwane.

We lived in their house until we found a small room on top of a high-rise apartment building near the African Association offices, which we rented. The ANC office helped us get financial stipends, which we used to pay our rent and buy some basic items. Our room was on the roof of this building, which housed the domestic maids working in it.

We shared a single bed. Apart from it, other treasured belongings were a primus stove, a couple of pots, a pan, two metal dishes, two old military cups and some spoons. We also had some linen for our bed, a couple of face cloths, and two towels.