By Reneva Fourie
The beautifully crafted Women in Solitary: Inside the female resistance to apartheid by Shanthini Naidoo simply but vividly captures the experiences of seven women detained in the apartheid Pretoria Central Prison from the winter of 1969 to the spring of 1970, as part of a political trial, known as the Trial of 22.
The women, Nomzamo Winnie Mandela, Martha Dhlamini, Thokozile Mngoma, Rita Ndzanga, Nondwe Mankahla, Joyce Sikhakhane and Shanthie Naidoo, were among 22 accused that faced 21 charges under the Suppression of Communism Act.
The well-researched narration starts by outlining the physiological and psychological effects of trauma, setting the stage for the more explicit horrific consequences of detention and solitary confinement. It then proceeds to demonstrate the tenacity and steadfastness of women anti-apartheid activists by succinctly unpacking the lives of particularly five of the detainees.
Naidoo paints a rich, holistic and captivating picture of the trialists.
While their activism is clearly depicted, each story is so well interwoven with their daily experiences, that a full sense of their characters can be appreciated despite the brevity of information.
Naidoo’s writing style makes it easy to imagine Joyce Sikhakhane-Rankin’s sassiness; her confidence as the first black woman journalist; and her resilient determination not to crack under torture.
One gets a sense of the family tapestry that has made Shantie Naidoo the deeply committed revolutionary that she is. Born into the struggle, with her parents, grandparents and their forebearers all having been politically active, it was only natural that her career too would be linked to fighting for justice in society and in the workplace. This commitment and bravery resulted in numerous arrests, banning orders and eventually exile.
Forced removals catapulted Rita Ndzanga into the world of resistance, which was further cemented by exposure to trade unionism. Her first detention, along with her husband, which resulted in their three young children being left behind alone, remains a raw wound. She was fortunate to serve in the first democratic parliament, first at provincial and then at a national level.
Nondwe Mankahla grew up in Port Elizabeth at a time when being a member of the ANC was fashionable, and though only 17 years old, she eagerly joined the 1952 Defiance Campaign as an ANC Youth League volunteer. Conscious of the value of the battle of ideas, she found full-time employment at the printing and publishing company that was producing the banned New Age, Fighting Talk and the Pondo Revolt in the 1960s. The book elaborates on how it is that she became part of the Trail of 22 and what happened thereafter.
The book also provides invaluable, untold insights on the experiences of Winnie Mandela. Before focusing on Winnie however, it dedicates a chapter to the notorious apartheid interrogator and torturer, Swanepoel.
Women in Solitary: Inside the female resistance to apartheid jerks the conscience. It reminds us of how easily we have forgotten the price of freedom and of our inadequacies in valuing and celebrating the efforts that have gone into the struggle for a just, united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa. The book especially stirs unease about the erasure of the historical contributions of women to our liberation. All those who wish to have a richer understanding of history, including the wide scope of uses of sexual violence as a weapon of war in apartheid South Africa, and an understanding of the impact of generational trauma today, simply must get a copy.
* Women in Solitary: Inside the female resistance to apartheid retails for R225 on Loot