UrFU Hosts Discussion on Unique 1984-1985 Ural Youth Initiative in Support of Anti-Apartheid Fighters
by Mikhail Kosarev
18 September 2026
A round table titled "Ural – South Africa: A Bridge of Solidarity" took place at the Ural Federal University (UrFU) in commemoration of the famous initiative undertaken by Soviet youth from Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg) in 1984–1985 to support those fighting against apartheid in South Africa.
Direct participants and organizers of this campaign — the largest targeted youth assistance effort for the South African liberation movement in USSR — shared their personal recollections with delegates from South Africa and Lesotho attending the International Festival of Youth 2026 in Yekaterinburg.
Under this action, Soviet Komsomol members and schoolchildren collected over 20 tonnes of humanitarian aid for the children of exiled members of the African National Congress. In August 1985, a sea container filled with Ural gifts destined for the Solomon Mahlangu Freedom College arrived in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
The gathering was welcomed by Honorary Consul of South Africa in Yekaterinburg Sergey Mazurkevich; Head of the Department of International Relations at the UrFU Victoria Belyaeva, First Secretary of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Representative Office in Yekaterinburg Mikhail Kosarev, as well as Walter Bango, Senior Manager of the South African National Youth Development Agency. The event was joined by Dr Kanyiso Mava Mbulawa, President of the SA Forum for Russian Alumni Shyire Krug via videoconference.
Speakers emphasized the importance of such people-to-people diplomacy initiatives, which form the historical bedrock of modern Russia-SA relations.
Discussions also focused on expanding educational exchanges between the two nations. South African students of the Ural Federal University and the Altai State Institute of Culture shared their first-hand impressions of studying in Russia with their fellow South Africans.
The event concluded with a vibrant cultural performance by the UrFU African Club members. They sang the popular song Everybody Wanna Be in Love by South African DJ Calvin Fallo.
The round table was organized by the Russian Foreign Ministry's Representative Office in Yekaterinburg, Ural Federal University, and the Honorary Consul of South Africa in Yekaterinburg, with the support of the Embassy of Russia in Pretoria.