When heads have been battered
And lives have been shattered,
Families scattered
As if nothing mattered,
Do you still wonder that streets are blood-spattered,
That weapons are clashing,
Assegais flashing,
Pangas gashing,
Bricks and bombs crashing?
How can you knock now, when you broke down the door;
Tell us to make peace when you started the war?
The weapons we laid down and handed to you,
You pass to our brothers so they’ll kill us too
You banned us, imprisoned us, slandered our name.
Then, when forced to release us, you get the acclaim
And the world pats your back, shakes you by the hand,
With your passport you’re welcome in every land.
You can fly on the Concorde, eat a Big Mac,
Join the Olympics, run on the world track.
The whole world is now smiling and welcoming you,
You who had all the pie now get the cake too…
… and the cherry on top.
But our hearts have been battered
Our livelihood shattered
Our nationhood scattered,
Oh, we never mattered.
It’ll be years before bones that you’ve broken can heal,
Years before nerves you’ve cocained can feel,
Before trees desiccated can blossom again,
And a land desecrated be washed of its pain –
Its layers and layers and layers of pain.
Oh ja, sure, we have much now we’ve not had before,
(Thank you)
But far less than was lost when you broke down that door,
Far less than was lost when you started the war.
By Colleen Saunders