Country of My SkullEver since Nelson Mandela dramatically walked out of prison in 1990 after twenty-seven years behind bars, South Africa has been undergoing a radical transformation. In one of the most miraculous events of the century, the oppressive system of apartheid was dismantled. But how could this country - one of spectacular beauty and promise - come to terms with its ugly past? How could its people, whom the oppressive white government had pitted against one another, live side by side as friends and neighbors? To begin the healing process, Nelson Mandela created the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, headed by the renowned cleric Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Established in 1995, the commission faced the awesome task of hearing the testimony of the victims of apartheid as well as the oppressors. In this book, Antjie Krog, a South African journalist and poet who has covered the work of the commission, recounts the drama, the horrors, the wrenching personal stories of the victims and their families. Through the testimonies of victims of abuse and violence, from the appearance of Winnie Mandela to former South African president P.W. Botha's extraordinary courthouse press conference, this award-winning poet leads us on an amazing journey. |
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Page 73
... face to face with the petrator - and tears it out into the light . per- Never before had the double - edged relationship between the torturer and the tortured been depicted as graphically as it was that week in the small , stuffy hall ...
... face to face with the petrator - and tears it out into the light . per- Never before had the double - edged relationship between the torturer and the tortured been depicted as graphically as it was that week in the small , stuffy hall ...
Page 84
... face ; I'd never seen him so black and his face – what was left of his face – a huge hole in the back of his head on the sticky floor . They used a pillow as a silencer ... pushed the pillow against his head , shot through it , the ...
... face ; I'd never seen him so black and his face – what was left of his face – a huge hole in the back of his head on the sticky floor . They used a pillow as a silencer ... pushed the pillow against his head , shot through it , the ...
Page 133
... face which was swollen to twice its normal size ... both his hands had been amputated , and he had to keep the ... face in a reflex action as if he wants to cover his face with his hands and every movement flashes the inhumanity of South ...
... face which was swollen to twice its normal size ... both his hands had been amputated , and he had to keep the ... face in a reflex action as if he wants to cover his face with his hands and every movement flashes the inhumanity of South ...
Contents
They Never Wept the Men of My Race | 1 |
None More Parted than Us | 14 |
First Hearings | 22 |
Copyright | |
22 other sections not shown
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Common terms and phrases
Afrikaner already amnesty answer Apartheid asked become blood body Botha bring busy called changed child coming Commissioners Committee crying death don't door eyes face fact father feel fire force four front give Government hall hand happened head heard hearing heart honour human it's journalists keep kill kind later leader leave live look Mamasela Mandela means months morning mother murder never night offices Party past person police political questions reconciliation remember responsibility says shot someone sound South African speak stand started Stompie stop story taken talk tell things thought told took town Truth Commission turned Tutu victims voice waiting walk week whole wife woman wrong
Bibliographic information
| Title | Country of My Skull |
| Author | Antjie Krog |
| Edition | reprint |
| Publisher | Jonathan Cape, 1999 |
| ISBN | 022405936X, 9780224059367 |
| Length | 286 pages |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |