Unisa online - Mama I am crying with joy

From left: Prof Louis Molamu (Registrar), Mothobi Mutloatse and Prof Mandla Makhanya (Principal and Vice-Chancellor)

The University of South Africa conferred an honorary degree, Doctor of Literature and Philosophy (Honoris Causa) on Mothobi Mutloatse last night at a graduation ceremony held in the ZK Matthews Great Hall on the Muckleneuk campus. Mutloatse is the founder of Skotaville Publishers, co-founder of the literary magazine Staff-rider, and now chairperson of the Mutloatse Arts Heritage Trust.

Skotaville Publishers, established by Mutloatse in 1982, was named after the former general secretary of the ANC, Mweli Trevor Skota (1893–1976). It was the first publishing house in South Africa to focus on literary and scholarly works by and about black people during the time when apartheid was at its most severe. Mutloatse came into prominence after Skotaville published Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu’s first book, Hope and suffering, in 1982, a book that Mutloatse personally edited and wrote the foreword for. This book became an instant bestseller and was soon translated into six languages, namely, Dutch, Spanish, Norwegian, Swedish, German and Japanese.

Mothobi was born in Western Native Township, Johannesburg, in 1950. After completing high school in 1969, he worked for newspapers such as the Golden City Post, Weekend World and The Voice, where he trained and gained experience as a journalist. In the early 1980s, prior to the publication of Hope and suffering, he compiled and edited a trilogy of writings by prominent black authors. The first of these anthologies, entitled Forced landing: Africa South contemporary writing (1980), was banned by the apartheid government upon publication. This anthology focused on South Africa’s black cultural history.

Apart from skilfully compiling anthologies, Mutloatse is a creative writer who has excelled in several literary genres. His novella, Mama ndiyalila depicts the 1976 Soweto students’ uprising. For the stage, he has written and produced Lakutshon’ ilanga which portrayed life on Robben Island, and Nkosi! The Healing Song which dramatised Enoch Sontonga’s prayer for Africa.

In 1996, Skotaville Publishers evolved into a broader entity known as Mutloatse Arts Heritage Trust, a vehicle through which Mutloatse continues his publishing activities as well as several other interests in the development and growth of the arts.

All books mentioned are housed in the Unisa Library.