Tsala ea Becoana
Tsala ea Batho / Tsala ea Becauna (“Friend of the people” or “Friend of the Becuana”) was a Tswana and English language newspaper based in Kimberly, Northern Cape between 1910-1915. It was a politically nonpartisan newspaper, running topical news and opinions that would interest black people in South Africa.
History
Tsala ea Becauna was founded by Sol Plaatje in 1910 in Kimberly, Northern Cape. Tsala ea Becauna was the second Tswana and English language newspaper Sol Plaaje founded and edited. Articles in Sepedi often featured in the publication too. The newspaper was published multilingually as Plaatje was concerned that Setswana could disappear completely due to decreasing use. The first newspaper, Koranta ea Becauna was founded in Mafikeng in 1901, but the newspaper collapsed at the end of May 1909 because of financial difficulties.
Along with his family, Plaatje left Mafikeng for Kimberly, where the Seleka Barolong of the Tswana Nation funded the establishment of Tsala ea Batho[1]. The Seleka Barolong were wealthy business people who lived in the Wesleyan Methodist mission community of Thaba Nchu in the Orange Free State[1].
The first edition of Tsala ea Becauna was published in June 1910 [2] It was a four-page weekly aimed at Tswana speakers in the Becuanaland protectorate and other Tswana speakers in South Africa Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page). . The newspaper could not ignore miners and their concerns in Kimberly because of predominance of mine labourers Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page). The name change reflected a growing national awareness and a shift from tribe to nation [3]
The publication struggled to stay open despite a circulation reportedly in the thousands and consistent advertising. Another contributing factor was that Plaatje left for Britain in May 1914, on the brink of World War I, as a member of the SANNC deputation protesting the Natives’ Land Act, and Tsala ea Batho came to an end during the prolonged time he was forced to spend overseas.
The English-Setswana weekly, Tsala ea Becauna, was one of the organs of black political news and opinion for the turbulent period of its existence
See Also
External Links
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References
- ^ a b [ https://books.google.co.za/books?id=a5ROAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA75&lpg=PA75&dq=Koranta+ea+Becoana&source=bl&ots=u08lXlNmre&sig=xaBCqOlyapmGp5GssBz3Rdiou5k&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiv47nS_8_XAhVVGsAKHaK2DeAQ6AEIVzAI#v=onepage&q=tsala&f=false. Switzer, L. “South Africa’s Alternate Press: Voices of Protest and Restance, 1880-1960” Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1997]
- ^ [ http://www.thejournalist.org.za/pioneers/sol-t-plaatje Jaffer, Z. and Tshabala, S. “Sol Plaatje: Pariah in the Land of His Birth” The Journalist. Accessed 23 November.]
- ^ [ https://books.google.co.za/books?id=gt07FgJovZEC&pg=PA196&lpg=PA196&dq=%22tsala+ea+batho%22&source=bl&ots=Z12EZ4pLMM&sig=XIGARD-ThWG3GgKpLXZvNHja3LM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwisuOCQx9LXAhWhA8AKHS7PB1oQ6AEINzAD#v=onepage&q=%22tsala%20ea%20batho%22&f=false Gerard, AS. “European-Language Writing in Sub-Saharan Africa. Budapest: Akademiai Kaido. 1986]