HOOT THE APARTHOOD - by Khatchatur I. Pilikian

We are all aware that the whole British Isles celebrated Nelson Mandela's Birthday.

Back in 1989, I was asked to participate in many popular rallies for Freedom for South Africa, to recite my poem written - incredible but true -- on April 24 1989... It was my take in verse on Apartheid.

In fact on June 26 1989 I was the only 'non African' poet to take part, with Benjamin Zephania, in the South Africa Freedom Day rally in London's Conway Hall. Many newspapers did echo about the event, among them Morning Star of June 28 1989, writing the following: "Passion and humour animated the verses of Benjamin Zephaniah and Armenian poet Khatchatur Pilikian, and the ANC choir sang freedom songs in between the speeches". The keynote speech was made by Henry Makgoti, the assistant secretary-general of the African National Congress. Other inspiring speeches were deliverd by the late Berniew Grant MP, Bishop David Shepherd of Liverpool, the late Archbishop Trevor Huddleston and Zola Zembe of the South Africah Congress of Trade Unions. Nozipho Diseko was the meeting's chairwoman.

On December 13th, 1989, The Asian Times published my poem on its noted page Poetry Corner. Here is that poem titled: HOOT THE APARTHOOD. (aparthood=apartheid), attached for your pleasure.

With best wishes

Khatchatur

HOOT THE

APART

HOOD

by Khatchatur I. Pilikian

ASIAN TIMES - Dec 13, 1989

Poetry Corner

Apartheid Apartheid

Black and White

Is always white

Apartheid Apartheid

Blacks are wrong

And Whites are right

Blacks are left

And Whites the right.

Apartheid Apartheid

Servants the blacks

But rulers Whites

Thus the Lord God

For sure is white

While the Devil

Must be black.

Apartheid Apartheid

Hate the Blacks

The Multitude

Love only Whites

The chosen few

And remember

The Wrath of God

Is Pure White.

Apartheid Apartheid

Lo and Behold

Crush the coloured

Burn all their bones

Scatter the dust

Baked in sunlight

You get white bath

To quench thy thirst

Of Ruling Rites

Apartheid Apartheid

Apathy Rot

How you ruin my appetite.

Masons, smiths

Miners, peasants

Mostly Blacks

But Freemasons

Preferred White.

Apartheid Apartheid

Your seeds are sown

By racist thugs

In the East and West

In the North and South

By Whites and Blacks

Yellows and Reds

Blues and Greens

Especially

When their King-size

Wealth and profits

Are in the white.

Apartheid Apartheid

Your roots are fed

With greed unleashed

Of the Divine

Surplus Value

The Golden Cow

Of Modern Times

Worshipped and emulated

Protected by

The Latter-day Prophets of

The Profit-at-any-cost

The updated TIMOCRACY

Where more you have

The more you rule

Inflicting thus genuine anguish

Violence, fraud, confrontation

Intolerance in human hearts

Breeding even Terrorism

Exploiting thus DEMOCRACY

The single most revolutionary

Concept-practice

For social change

Bequeathed to us by History.

While Life on Earth

Is entangled

To be strangled

By the Anarchy of Pollution

Misery, hunger

Are the parts left

For those in need

The multitude

Though plenty’s part

Is grabbed and held

Often wasted

By those few

The chosen whitewashed

Of Pure Kind.

Apartheid Apartheid

Mounting on the

Racial time bomb

Stamping the rules

Of a vile game

Thus Speaks the Horseman

Of Apartheid’s Armageddon

Of no colour, of no creed

But galloping among us all:

DIVID AND RULE

DECEIVE AND DIVIDE

BETRAY AND DECEIVE

PAY AND BETRAY

WHEN IN POWER

KILL THE FREE

DIVIDE AND RULE

AND WHEN OUTRULED

LET GENOCIDE

-YOUR ATOM BOMB-

RULE YOUR RULES.

Apartheid Apartheid

Thou grave insult

To human kind

For sure your grave

Will soon be dug

By Blacks and Whites

But mostly Blacks

And the struggle

Black struggle

Shall continue

Against the rule

Of Divine Right.

While Black Earth

Drinks Red Blood

Sweat of Blacks

Sweat of Reds

Sweat of all

The human kind

Sweated salty

Droplets of white

Apartheid, Apartheid

You have nowhere

To hide or part

To enjoy your Apathy Right

You have nowhere

To hide or part

But to vanish

All wrapped in white.

April 24, 1989. London.