Comment:
The coordinates above are for the cemetery, taken from Google Earth, as we did not have a GPS at the time of the site visit.
The Avalon Cemetery is reported to be one of the largest graveyards in South Africa, with over 300 000 people buried there. Located in the heart of Soweto, it is easy to access and well taken care of. Some of South Africa's most famous citizens are interred here, including Hector Pieterson, Joe Slovo, Lillian Ngoyi (?), Helen Joseph and Hastings Ndlovu (Wikipedia).
Sophie Winton and Stephanie-Anne Barnardt visited the site on the afternoon of 16 July as part of the MUCH Unit's SS Mendi Project. They were greeted at the gate by a security guard named Ifram who offered to take them to the Memorial.
The Memorial stands near the main entrance to the cemetery, close to the Tshiawelo train station on the northern border of the graveyard. It is a large face brick and granite structure approximately 2,5m tall and 5m long. The monument is inlaid with granite slabs that list the men who were lost when the SS Mendi sank in 1917. Another granite plaque announces that it was unveiled by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 23 March 1995 to honour the sinking of the SS Mendi.
In front of the memorial is a large open patch of land that stands out in the over-crowded graveyard. Our guide told us that it is used by the SA National Defense Force for memorial parades. The SANDF also leave wreaths on the memorial, three were observed. The entire site is clean and well-tended. There is a pile of large granite behind the memorial possible for future repairs.
Our guide explained that he knew that the memorial was for soldiers that had died but he didn't know who they were or where and when they died. He has worked as a security guard at the cemetery for 4 years and was interested to hear the story of the Mendi and the men on board.
Actions:
* contact the SANDF to investigate the memorial parades - who parades and when; is it open to the public?
* consult with the SANDF as to publicity for the SS Mendi story, the memorial site, and the broader WWI commemoration projects
* investigate the possibility of raising awareness locally eg school visits
http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33740:ss-mendi-remembered-in-sa-and-uk&catid=111:sa-defence
http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=29563:first-armed-forces-day-parade&catid=111:sa-defence
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