Letter from Dr. Betty Govinden

Mum and I did an interview with Herbie and Berry Govinden, before we left South Africa. We also had a chance to discuss with them the application of Satyagraha to South Africa's violent crime problem, and Devi Rajab's recent article in the Mercury (you can see a picture of the article here, and I am trying to make a copy of the article accessible online for free). Here is Dr. Govinden's response to the article, which was recently published in the Mercury, for the record:

VINCENT LAWRENCE – Role Model for a Great Grandson

I was happy to read Devi Rajab’s account of her dialogue with Dr Kenneth Leslie, who told her of the power of non-violence, as espoused by Gandhi, to deal with the rampant problems of crime [The Mercury, June 4th]. Leslie’s constructive application of Gandhian principles to present-day problems of violence in all forms is worth understanding and following through purposefully both locally and internationally.

Reading the article, I pondered over how Gandhian principles have been handed down from generation to generation. Dr Leslie is the great grandson of Vincent Lawrence, who was Gandhi’s secretary. Lawrence, a well-known community leader at the time, came from Madras in the early 1890’s as a trained teacher, and worked as a clerk in Gandhi’s legal practice in Durban.

He was a part of the Gandhi household for a time and imbibed Gandhi’s values and ideals, as did R K Khan, the well-known advocate and philanthropist. He worked side by side with Gandhi in the Ambulance Corps during the South African War. It is not surprising that Vincent Lawrence spear headed many petitions in the 1900’s against discriminatory laws which affected Indians adversely. Lawrence assumed the leadership of the Natal Indian Congress from time to time and contributed to several social welfare organizations, sporting, cultural and church groups. A devout Catholic, he was staunchly non-sectarian is his dealings, like his mentor. It is worth noting that Leslie’s great grandmother, Mrs Josephine Lawrence served the cause of education and social upliftment, especially that of women and girls.

Even after Gandhi returned to India, Lawrence continued with his political involvement, working with Manilal Gandhi, who himself followed in the footsteps of his father. Lawrence was among Manilal’s key supporters when there were South African solidarity formations in Durban for the Swaraj movement in India.

I would be very interested to know whose copy of Richard Gregg’s “The Power of Non-Violence” Kenneth Leslie is reading. This was one of Manilal Gandhi’s favourite books and was much in use in the early 1950’s when Manilal went on an extended fast in protest against the apartheid government’s policies. It was Vincent Lawrence who readily offered his support to Manilal at the time, as well as, among others, Gadija Christopher.

A great grandfather such as The Honourable Vedanayagum [Vincent] Lawrence - what an admirable legacy for Kenneth Leslie to draw on!
MS D GOVINDEN Phd