Overview

Duty and Dynamite: A Life of Activism traces the life story of Laloo 'Isu' Chiba. The son of Gujarati immigrants to South Africa, he shows little interest in politics in his early life, instead associating with the notorious Fordsburg gangster, Sharif Khan. His gradual politicization in 1950s Johannesburg leads to his recruitment into the first generation of Umkhonto we Sizwe freedom fighters, where he displays resourcefulness and bravery in equal measure. That earns him torture, detention, and ultimately eighteen years in prison on Robben Island. He is devastated by his separation from his wife and three young daughters for close to two decades. On the Island, alongside Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, and Ahmed Kathrada, he excels as one of the transcribers of Mandela's autobiography, a key communications operative, and an originator of the prisoners' garden. Soon after his release, he immerses himself in the politics of the United Democratic Front, where he distinguishes himself as a leading activist of the democratic movement. After 1994, he is called upon to serve as an ANC MP for two terms in SA's democratic Parliament, where he steadfastly fights against corruption in the Arms Deal. This autobiography, published posthumously, talks to a life of duty to the cause of freedom.

Full Product Details

Author:   Laloo Chiba
Publisher:   Real African Publishers Pty Ltd
Imprint:   Real African Publishers Pty Ltd
Weight:   0.500kg
ISBN:  

9781928341604

ISBN 10:   1928341608
Pages:   264
Publication Date:   01 November 2019
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Not yet available  
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Table of Contents

Message by Derek Hanekom; Foreword by Ahmed Kathrada; Introduction by Professor Tim Couzens; Prologue; Chapter 1: The Early Years (1930-1951); Chapter 2: A Turning Point (1951-1953); Chapter 3: A New Leaf (1953-1961); Chapter 4: MK Launch and Indian Recruitment (1961-1962); Chapter 5: A Year of Action (1962); Chapter 6: Arrests, Torture and Detentions (1963); Chapter 7: The Great Escape (1963); Chapter 8: A Blow to the Movement (1963-mid-1964); Chapter 9: The Little Rivonia Trial (1964); Chapter 10: Arrival on Robben Island (1965); Chapter 11: Life on the Island (1965-1982); Chapter 12: Politics on the Island; Chapter 13: Release and Continued Resistance (December 1982-December 1989); Chapter 14: State Repression in the 1980s; Chapter 15: Unbanning the ANC, Mandela's Release and the Transition (1991-1993); Chapter 16: The Transition Years (1990-1994); Chapter 17: First Democratic Elections; Chapter 18: Public Representative (1994-2004); Chapter 19: Retirement (2004-2017); Epilogue:

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Author Information

A member of the South African Communist Party and the Transvaal Indian Congress, Laloo 'Isu' Chiba was profoundly affected by the extreme violence of the Apartheid regime during the Sharpeville massacre in 1960. That incident convinced him of the need for armed struggle and controlled sabotage to pressurise the apartheid regime into negotiations. Chiba joined the African National Congress's (ANC) armed wing Umkonto we Sizwe (MK) in 1961. Chiba was elected Member of Parliament in the first and second democratic elections in 1994 and 1999, and served on the Board of the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation.

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