Country of My Skull: Guilt, Sorrow, and the Limits of Forgiveness in the New South AfricaEver 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. Repressive laws mandating separation of the races were thrown out. The country, which had been carved into a crazy quilt that reserved the most prosperous areas for whites and the most desolate and backward for blacks, was reunited. The dreaded and dangerous security force, which for years had systematically tortured, spied upon, and harassed people of color and their white supporters, 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. Amnesty was granted to those who offered a full confession of any crimes associated with apartheid. Since the commission began its work, it has been the central player in a drama that has riveted the country. 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. Country of My Skull captures the complexity of the Truth Commission's work. The narrative is often traumatic, vivid, and provocative. Krog's powerful prose lures the reader actively and inventively through a mosaic of insights, impressions, and secret themes. This compelling tale is Antjie Krog's profound literary account of the mending of a country that was in colossal need of change. |
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Page v
... tortured . Death was frequently so gruesome as to defy even the most active imagination . And for a va- riety of reasons , those who suffered at the hands of the apartheid state usually suffered in silence . The South Africans who ...
... tortured . Death was frequently so gruesome as to defy even the most active imagination . And for a va- riety of reasons , those who suffered at the hands of the apartheid state usually suffered in silence . The South Africans who ...
Page vii
... torture or severe ill treatment . The commission was organized into three committees : Human Rights Violations , Reparations and Rehabilitation and Amnesty . All told , commissioners took more than 20,000 statements from survivors and ...
... torture or severe ill treatment . The commission was organized into three committees : Human Rights Violations , Reparations and Rehabilitation and Amnesty . All told , commissioners took more than 20,000 statements from survivors and ...
Page 9
... torture , and severe ill - treatment . Not only would a starting date of June 16 , 1976 , shorten the commission's area of research by six- teen years , but it would have symbolic resonance , because it ushered in the famous cycle of ...
... torture , and severe ill - treatment . Not only would a starting date of June 16 , 1976 , shorten the commission's area of research by six- teen years , but it would have symbolic resonance , because it ushered in the famous cycle of ...
Page 15
... tortured and hung upside down by the security police , ANC members shout him down . Crying , he relates how he was repeatedly thrown on the cement floor . Amid raucous laughter , an ANC member shouts , " That's where you got your brain ...
... tortured and hung upside down by the security police , ANC members shout him down . Crying , he relates how he was repeatedly thrown on the cement floor . Amid raucous laughter , an ANC member shouts , " That's where you got your brain ...
Page 47
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Contents
| 3 | |
| 19 | |
| 37 | |
FOUR The Narrative of Betrayal Has to Be Reinvented Every Time | 67 |
FIVE The Sound of the Second Narrative | 74 |
Let Us Hear It in Another Language | 100 |
NINE The Political Page Curls over Itself | 131 |
The Lesser of Two Evils | 142 |
FIFTEEN It Gets to All of Usfrom Tutu to Mamasela | 201 |
SEVENTEEN Then Burst the Mighty Heart | 251 |
EIGHTEEN The Shepherd and the Landscape of My Bones | 259 |
NINETEEN A Tragedy of Errors | 293 |
TWENTY Mother Faces the Nation | 318 |
TWENTYONE Beloved Country of Grief and Grace | 341 |
Epilogue | 367 |
Acknowledgments | 387 |
In Transit with the Ghosts | 150 |
TWELVE The Political Tongue at Anchor | 162 |
THIRTEEN Blood Rains in Every Latitude | 175 |
FOURTEEN Letters on the Acoustics of Scars | 191 |
Cast of Characters | 395 |
Index | 403 |
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Common terms and phrases
Afrikaner Alex Boraine amnesty applications Amnesty Committee apartheid Archbishop asked Benzien blood body Boer Boraine Bram called Cape Town chairperson child commissioners crying death Dirk Coetzee door eastern Cape eyes F. W. de Klerk face feel forgiveness front guilt hand happened head heard hearing Hechter honor human rights Johannesburg journalists killed Klerk lawyer leader Lekotse live look Madikizela-Mandela Mamasela Mbeki minister morning mother murder National Party Nelson Mandela never night Nomonde P. W. Botha Parliament past perpetrators person police policemen political politicians president prison radio reconciliation remember Robben Island says Seipei shot Sibaya someone South African stand Stompie story talk tell Thabo Mbeki things told took torture Truth Commission Tutu Umkhonto we Sizwe victims Viljoen Vlakplaas voice walk wife Winnie Winnie Madikizela-Mandela words Xhosa