James Frederick Sangala
Encyclopedia
James Frederick Sangala was a founding member of the Nyasaland African Congress
during the period of British colonial rule.
Sangala was given the nickname "Pyagusi", which means "one who perseveres".
Sangala was born in a village in the highlands of what is now southern Malawi
around 1900, a few years after the British had established the British Central Africa Protectorate. He received sufficient education to find work first as a primary school teacher, then as a clerk in various commercial enterprises. From 1930 until the early 1950s he held clerical positions in the colonial administration. He then retired to earn his living with a brick-making business.
In the 1930s, Sangala became a leader of the Native Association movement in Nyasaland
, encouraging the formation of local representative groups. In 1943 he was a founder and the acting secretary of the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC), which sought to give a unified voice to the local associations and to press for greater rights for Africans. From 1954 to 1956 he was president of the Congress, but was persuaded to resign to make way for more radical members who were seeking full independence. Despite his moderate stand, Sangala was arrested for his activities more than once in the 1950s. Renamed the Malawi Congress Party, the NAC was to win all the seats in the 1961 Nyasaland elections, and to lead the country to self-governance in 1963 and full independence as the state of Malawi in 1964.
, near the town of Zomba in the highlands of what is now southern Malawi.
Zomba was the residence of the colonial governor and the administrative center of the British Central Africa Protectorate, renamed Nyasaland in 1907.
Sangala was a Mang'anja
.
His mother was a herbalist who specialized in treatment of trichomonas
.
Sangala was educated at Zomba Mission primary school and then at Blantyre Mission substation at Domasi
.
He qualified as a teacher in 1923 and taught primary school until 1927.
In search of higher wages, Sangala obtained work with Limbe Trading Company in 1927, then as a cotton buyer with the British Cotton Growing Association (BGGA) and next as a bookkeeper for M.G. Dharap, an Indian businessman in Limbe
. In March 1928 he started work for the African Lakes Corporation, and in May 1929 returned to the BGGA as an office manager.
Dissatisfied with the working conditions for Africans in businesses, Sangala joined the civil service in April 1930 as a clerk in the office of the Provincial Commissioner in Blantyre
. He then worked for the Blantyre District Commissioner and the Blantyre District Medical Office until July 1942.
His work involved typing and other forms of assistance to the commissioner.
In July 1942, Sangala transferred to the Judicial Department of the civil service in Blantyre as an interpreter. He was moved to the Dedza
District Office in 1944, in his view because of his political activities. In 1947 he returned to the Blantyre District Office, but retired in the early 1950s so he could spend more time on politics, receiving a small government pension and running a brick manufacturing business as his main source of income.
The Native Associations sought to gain a voice in administrative, economic and other issues. They met some resistance from tribal leaders, but on the whole were encouraged by the colonial administrations. Their emphasis was regional or national rather than tribal. Meetings were often attended by representatives of other associations, helping them exchange views on issues and approaches.
James Frederick Sangala in Blantyre
and Levi Mumba in the rest of the country became leaders of the Native Association movement in Nyasaland during the 1930s.
Sangala and Mumba both believed in the importance of Nyasa unity and in the virtues of democratic civil society.
During the 1930s, the white colonists of Southern Rhodesia
(now Zimbabwe
) and Northern Rhodesia
(now Zambia
) were pushing for unification, and wanted to include Nyasaland
in the union, seeing Nyasaland as a useful source of labor that might otherwise be drawn to South Africa. Nyasas resisted this move since they regarded the Rhodesias as "White Man" territory, and preferred the trusteeship arrangement in Nyasaland under which they had greater rights.
As early as 1935, the Blantyre Native Association led by Sangala called a meeting of leaders in the area where they were invited to sign a petition opposing amalgamation. When the colonial administration asked the chiefs for views on unification in 1938, the formal statement in reply was in fact composed by Mumba.
Sangala was acting secretary at the meeting in May 1944 at which the Congress was announced.
He was unable to attend the formal inaugural meeting of the Congress in October 1944, at which Levi Zililo Mumba
was elected President-General, since he had been transferred to Dedza
in the Central province, but he was elected to the central committee.
Sangala, Mumba and their associates had a vision of the NAC becoming "the mouthpiece of the Africans", cooperating with the government and other colonial bodies "in any matters necessary to speed up the progress of Nyasaland".
Sangala encouraged the Congress to "Fight for Freedom", although he was careful to explain to the colonial powers that he did not mean armed conflict by that phrase.
Sangala explained to the District Commissioner, Eric Barnes, that he advocated peaceful protests against practices such as curfews and pass laws which treated Africans as a subordinate race.
Sangala was not always consistent. In 1949 he accepted a position as a member of the protectorate's Boy Scouts Council.
Although in theory open to all races, in practice this organization segregated European, Indian and African boys.
The NAC was intended to be an umbrella organization that would coordinate the Native Associations and other local organizations of indigenous people in the protectorate of Nyasaland.
Sangala ensured that each of these groups would have a seat on the executive committee of the NAC.
However, the organization was weak.
When a special committee including Sangala recommended acceptance of Dr. Hastings Banda
's proposal that the NAC should have a full-time paid secretary, the proposal was rejected overwhelmingly, perhaps due to suspicion of Banda's motives.
By 1950, the NAC had fallen into disarray, forcing the President Charles Matinga
to resign for misusing Congress funds.
Sangala threw his efforts into reviving the organization, leading to an important meeting in August 1950 in Mzimba
where James Chinyama was elected President, with Sangala Vice-President.
Until the early 1950s, Sangala and other leaders such as Doctor Hastings Banda assumed that Nyasaland should evolve towards self-government while remaining under the authority of the British Colonial Office.
However, in 1953 the Colonial Office established the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
in which Europeans would retain a position of leadership, abandoning the earlier principles of partnership between the races. The NAC leaders saw this as a betrayal.
Uncoordinated protests followed, which were forcefully suppressed, with an official death toll of eleven Africans..
Sangala was arrested in September 1953, but was released the next month when the magistrate dismissed the charges.
This ambiguous position was rejected by some members of the party, who were against any participation in the government. Some resigned or were dismissed. Others who remained in the party attempted a coup towards the end of 1955, calling for resignation of the two MPs and for the NAC to work for immediate secession from the federation and self-rule.
Although the leaders of a coup attempt were forced to resign, they remained politically influential.
Sangala was conscientious in attending committee meetings, but was handicapped by the need to attend to his own business affairs, often unavailable to provide leadership or advice.
In March 1956, Sangala announced that due to health reasons he would not run again for President of Congress.
Sangala continued to press London to accept the principle of democratic elections to the Legislative Council, or Legco.
Sangala asserted his right of freedom of movement and was arrested. He made sure this was reported in England.
In May 1956, Sangala stood trial at the High Court for sedition.
He was charged with having advised Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda
, the secretary-general of the Congress, to hand a seditious publication to the editor of the Nyasaland Times. The charge was the subject of a question in the British House of Commons
.
In January 1957, Sangala was persuaded to resign from his position as Nyasaland African Congress President, and was replaced by Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda.
The NAC was banned by the colonial authorities in 1959, and was succeeded by the Malawi Congress Party (MCP), led from prison by Dr. Hastings Banda
. The British came to accept that independence was inevitable. Hastings Banda was released in 1960 and allowed to return to prepare for elections.
By then, Sangala and other members of the old guard of the Congress had faded into oblivion and were rarely heard of again.
In 1961 the MCP overwhelmingly won the first elections held under universal suffrage, and in 1963 the country gained self governance followed by independence the next year with the new name of Malawi.
Sangala's grandson, Aaron Sangala
, was appointed Minister of Internal Affairs and Public Security in the Cabinet of Malawi
in May 2009.
Some critics said he was autocratic, but others thought he was too mild.
He was not interested in publicity, and avoided conflict, preferring to work behind the scenes in organizing the party. But in a crisis, he was willing to stand forward.
In an interview in August 1961 he said "My first duty was to do such things [that would] ... cause people to be happy. Due to this aim I do not fear to speak to any person provided it is the truth and this always does not please my friends who suggest that I am a difficult person". Sangala was a strong believer in the virtues of dignity, and refused to accept common views within colonial society that the "natives" were in any way inferior to Whites.
Nyasaland African Congress
The Nyasaland African Congress was an organization that evolved into a political party in Nyasaland during the colonial period. The NAC was suppressed in 1959, but was succeeded in 1960 by the Malawi Congress Party, which went to on decisively win the first universal suffrage elections in 1961,...
during the period of British colonial rule.
Sangala was given the nickname "Pyagusi", which means "one who perseveres".
Sangala was born in a village in the highlands of what is now southern Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
around 1900, a few years after the British had established the British Central Africa Protectorate. He received sufficient education to find work first as a primary school teacher, then as a clerk in various commercial enterprises. From 1930 until the early 1950s he held clerical positions in the colonial administration. He then retired to earn his living with a brick-making business.
In the 1930s, Sangala became a leader of the Native Association movement in Nyasaland
Nyasaland
Nyasaland or the Nyasaland Protectorate, was a British protectorate located in Africa, which was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Since 1964, it has been known as Malawi....
, encouraging the formation of local representative groups. In 1943 he was a founder and the acting secretary of the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC), which sought to give a unified voice to the local associations and to press for greater rights for Africans. From 1954 to 1956 he was president of the Congress, but was persuaded to resign to make way for more radical members who were seeking full independence. Despite his moderate stand, Sangala was arrested for his activities more than once in the 1950s. Renamed the Malawi Congress Party, the NAC was to win all the seats in the 1961 Nyasaland elections, and to lead the country to self-governance in 1963 and full independence as the state of Malawi in 1964.
Birth and education
James Frederick Sangala was born around 1900 at NaisiNaisi
Naisi is a community in the Southern Region of Malawi, now in effect a northern suburb of the city of Zomba.The community lies below the Zomba Massif to the north, which may be accessed via a rough road....
, near the town of Zomba in the highlands of what is now southern Malawi.
Zomba was the residence of the colonial governor and the administrative center of the British Central Africa Protectorate, renamed Nyasaland in 1907.
Sangala was a Mang'anja
Mang'anja
The Mang'anja are a Bantu people of central and southern Africa, particularly around Chikwawa in the Shire River valley of southern Malawi. They speak a dialect of the Nyanja language, and are a branch of the Amaravi people. As of 1996 their population was estimated at 2,486,070....
.
His mother was a herbalist who specialized in treatment of trichomonas
Trichomonas
Trichomonas is a genus of anaerobic protists that are parasites of vertebrates. They are included with the parabasalids.Species of Trichomonas include:*Trichomonas vaginalis, an organism generally living inside the vagina of humans...
.
Sangala was educated at Zomba Mission primary school and then at Blantyre Mission substation at Domasi
Domasi
Domasi is a community in Malawi to the northeast of Zomba.It is the location of the Domasi College of Education.The Shallow Well Project funded by the First Presbyterian Church of Urbana in Urbana, Illinois, United States is providing safe drinking water for the villages around Domasi. As of 2004,...
.
He qualified as a teacher in 1923 and taught primary school until 1927.
Working career
Limbe, Malawi
Limbe is a town in Malawi. It is located in Blantyre District. It is the operational headquarters and workshops for Malawi Railways.- Overview :Limbe is 7 miles east of Blantyre and was founded in 1909. Blantyre Briefly merged with Limbe in 1956....
. In March 1928 he started work for the African Lakes Corporation, and in May 1929 returned to the BGGA as an office manager.
Dissatisfied with the working conditions for Africans in businesses, Sangala joined the civil service in April 1930 as a clerk in the office of the Provincial Commissioner in Blantyre
Blantyre, Malawi
Blantyre or Mandala is Malawi's centre of finance and commerce, the largest city with an estimated 732,518 inhabitants . It is sometimes referred to as the commercial capital of Malawi as opposed to the political capital, Lilongwe...
. He then worked for the Blantyre District Commissioner and the Blantyre District Medical Office until July 1942.
His work involved typing and other forms of assistance to the commissioner.
In July 1942, Sangala transferred to the Judicial Department of the civil service in Blantyre as an interpreter. He was moved to the Dedza
Dedza
Dedza is the main township of Dedza District in the Central Region of Malawi.Dedza is located about 85 km south of Malawi's capital, Lilongwe, off the M1 road to Blantyre at a point where a trans-African highway from Johannesburg enters the country....
District Office in 1944, in his view because of his political activities. In 1947 he returned to the Blantyre District Office, but retired in the early 1950s so he could spend more time on politics, receiving a small government pension and running a brick manufacturing business as his main source of income.
Native Associations
The North Nyasa Native Association was formed in 1912, and was followed by several other such associations in the early part of the century, typically composed of the educated elite: teachers, church leaders and civil servants.The Native Associations sought to gain a voice in administrative, economic and other issues. They met some resistance from tribal leaders, but on the whole were encouraged by the colonial administrations. Their emphasis was regional or national rather than tribal. Meetings were often attended by representatives of other associations, helping them exchange views on issues and approaches.
James Frederick Sangala in Blantyre
Blantyre, Malawi
Blantyre or Mandala is Malawi's centre of finance and commerce, the largest city with an estimated 732,518 inhabitants . It is sometimes referred to as the commercial capital of Malawi as opposed to the political capital, Lilongwe...
and Levi Mumba in the rest of the country became leaders of the Native Association movement in Nyasaland during the 1930s.
Sangala and Mumba both believed in the importance of Nyasa unity and in the virtues of democratic civil society.
During the 1930s, the white colonists of Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
(now Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
) and Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia was a territory in south central Africa, formed in 1911. It became independent in 1964 as Zambia.It was initially administered under charter by the British South Africa Company and formed by it in 1911 by amalgamating North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia...
(now Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
) were pushing for unification, and wanted to include Nyasaland
Nyasaland
Nyasaland or the Nyasaland Protectorate, was a British protectorate located in Africa, which was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Since 1964, it has been known as Malawi....
in the union, seeing Nyasaland as a useful source of labor that might otherwise be drawn to South Africa. Nyasas resisted this move since they regarded the Rhodesias as "White Man" territory, and preferred the trusteeship arrangement in Nyasaland under which they had greater rights.
As early as 1935, the Blantyre Native Association led by Sangala called a meeting of leaders in the area where they were invited to sign a petition opposing amalgamation. When the colonial administration asked the chiefs for views on unification in 1938, the formal statement in reply was in fact composed by Mumba.
Nyasaland African Congress 1943 – 1953
The Nyasaland Educated African Council emerged in 1943 from the leaders of the Native Associations, calling for a rapid movement towards self-government. A few months later the Council renamed itself the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) at the urging of Sangala, who felt the movement should not be restricted to the educated elite.Sangala was acting secretary at the meeting in May 1944 at which the Congress was announced.
He was unable to attend the formal inaugural meeting of the Congress in October 1944, at which Levi Zililo Mumba
Levi Zililo Mumba
Levi Zililo Mumba was a leading local politician and the first President of the Nyasaland African Congress during the period of British colonial rule in Nyasaland, which became the independent state of Malawi in 1964....
was elected President-General, since he had been transferred to Dedza
Dedza
Dedza is the main township of Dedza District in the Central Region of Malawi.Dedza is located about 85 km south of Malawi's capital, Lilongwe, off the M1 road to Blantyre at a point where a trans-African highway from Johannesburg enters the country....
in the Central province, but he was elected to the central committee.
Sangala, Mumba and their associates had a vision of the NAC becoming "the mouthpiece of the Africans", cooperating with the government and other colonial bodies "in any matters necessary to speed up the progress of Nyasaland".
Sangala encouraged the Congress to "Fight for Freedom", although he was careful to explain to the colonial powers that he did not mean armed conflict by that phrase.
Sangala explained to the District Commissioner, Eric Barnes, that he advocated peaceful protests against practices such as curfews and pass laws which treated Africans as a subordinate race.
Sangala was not always consistent. In 1949 he accepted a position as a member of the protectorate's Boy Scouts Council.
Although in theory open to all races, in practice this organization segregated European, Indian and African boys.
The NAC was intended to be an umbrella organization that would coordinate the Native Associations and other local organizations of indigenous people in the protectorate of Nyasaland.
Sangala ensured that each of these groups would have a seat on the executive committee of the NAC.
However, the organization was weak.
When a special committee including Sangala recommended acceptance of Dr. Hastings Banda
Hastings Banda
Hastings Kamuzu Banda was the leader of Malawi and its predecessor state, Nyasaland, from 1961 to 1994. After receiving much of his education overseas, Banda returned to his home country to speak against colonialism and advocate for independence...
's proposal that the NAC should have a full-time paid secretary, the proposal was rejected overwhelmingly, perhaps due to suspicion of Banda's motives.
Charles Matinga
Charles Jameson Matinga was a politician in Nyasaland before the colony obtained independence from the British.He was elected President-General of the Nyasaland African Congress in 1945, after the death of Levi Zililo Mumba....
to resign for misusing Congress funds.
Sangala threw his efforts into reviving the organization, leading to an important meeting in August 1950 in Mzimba
Mzimba
Mzimba is a town in the Mzimba District of Malawi. The district comprises descendants of Tumbuka and Ngoni peoples.The district of Mzimba comprises a number of Traditional Authorities from the Ngoni people. The head of these Traditional Authorities, or Paramount Chief , is M'Mbelwa IV.-Demographics:...
where James Chinyama was elected President, with Sangala Vice-President.
Until the early 1950s, Sangala and other leaders such as Doctor Hastings Banda assumed that Nyasaland should evolve towards self-government while remaining under the authority of the British Colonial Office.
However, in 1953 the Colonial Office established the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation , was a semi-independent state in southern Africa that existed from 1953 to the end of 1963, comprising the former self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia,...
in which Europeans would retain a position of leadership, abandoning the earlier principles of partnership between the races. The NAC leaders saw this as a betrayal.
Uncoordinated protests followed, which were forcefully suppressed, with an official death toll of eleven Africans..
Sangala was arrested in September 1953, but was released the next month when the magistrate dismissed the charges.
Nyasaland African Congress President 1954 – 1956
In January 1954 Sangala was elected President of the Congress. Although he continued to advocate civil disobedience, he also accepted the decision of two NAC members to run for election for the two seats reserved for Nyasas in the Federal Parliament.This ambiguous position was rejected by some members of the party, who were against any participation in the government. Some resigned or were dismissed. Others who remained in the party attempted a coup towards the end of 1955, calling for resignation of the two MPs and for the NAC to work for immediate secession from the federation and self-rule.
Although the leaders of a coup attempt were forced to resign, they remained politically influential.
Sangala was conscientious in attending committee meetings, but was handicapped by the need to attend to his own business affairs, often unavailable to provide leadership or advice.
In March 1956, Sangala announced that due to health reasons he would not run again for President of Congress.
Sangala continued to press London to accept the principle of democratic elections to the Legislative Council, or Legco.
Sangala asserted his right of freedom of movement and was arrested. He made sure this was reported in England.
In May 1956, Sangala stood trial at the High Court for sedition.
He was charged with having advised Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda
Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda
Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda was a politician in Nyasaland in the years prior to independence.He was President-General of the Nyasaland African Congress from 1957 to 1958, and founded the Congress Liberation Party in 1959.-Background:...
, the secretary-general of the Congress, to hand a seditious publication to the editor of the Nyasaland Times. The charge was the subject of a question in the British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
.
In January 1957, Sangala was persuaded to resign from his position as Nyasaland African Congress President, and was replaced by Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda.
The NAC was banned by the colonial authorities in 1959, and was succeeded by the Malawi Congress Party (MCP), led from prison by Dr. Hastings Banda
Hastings Banda
Hastings Kamuzu Banda was the leader of Malawi and its predecessor state, Nyasaland, from 1961 to 1994. After receiving much of his education overseas, Banda returned to his home country to speak against colonialism and advocate for independence...
. The British came to accept that independence was inevitable. Hastings Banda was released in 1960 and allowed to return to prepare for elections.
By then, Sangala and other members of the old guard of the Congress had faded into oblivion and were rarely heard of again.
In 1961 the MCP overwhelmingly won the first elections held under universal suffrage, and in 1963 the country gained self governance followed by independence the next year with the new name of Malawi.
Sangala's grandson, Aaron Sangala
Aaron Sangala
Aaron Sangala is a politician who was appointed Minister of Internal Affairs and Public Security in the cabinet of Malawi in May 2009....
, was appointed Minister of Internal Affairs and Public Security in the Cabinet of Malawi
Cabinet of Malawi
The Cabinet of Malawi is the executive branch of the government, made up of the President, Vice-President and Ministers and Deputy Ministers responsible for the different departments.The current ruling party is the Democratic Progressive Party...
in May 2009.
Character
Sangala was described by W.L. Jennings, the High Court Registrar in Blantyre, as a "peculiar" but "charming" man whose motto was "to struggle for the freedom and peace of all".Some critics said he was autocratic, but others thought he was too mild.
He was not interested in publicity, and avoided conflict, preferring to work behind the scenes in organizing the party. But in a crisis, he was willing to stand forward.
In an interview in August 1961 he said "My first duty was to do such things [that would] ... cause people to be happy. Due to this aim I do not fear to speak to any person provided it is the truth and this always does not please my friends who suggest that I am a difficult person". Sangala was a strong believer in the virtues of dignity, and refused to accept common views within colonial society that the "natives" were in any way inferior to Whites.