the purple shall govern

"What about the purple people?" a reader asked the Cape Times' Teleletters. "Not only has the government messed up with the tricameral system, now their police have created another problem. They, the government, have made 'provision' for the so-called coloureds and Indians -- how are they going to accommodate the 'purple people? Perhaps the next time they use their water cannon, they would like to consult with their voters as to which colour is fashionable."

ten years ago, on the second of septemeber 1989, cape town was immersed in a purpple revolution. a police water cannon, tinged with purple dye, was directed towards protesters that had descended on the city to march against the impending faux multi-racial tricameral elections. coloureds, indians and whites were eligable to vote in these elections and blacks still had no representation.

a protester managed to take hold of the police water cannon and redirect it away from the crowd, directing it towards the national party headquaters, a white walled building called the "old town house". the entire building was consequently painted purple.

the next day a graffitti artist painted the words, "the purple shall govern" on the walls of cape town station and a slogan became etched in south african anti apartheid lore.