Comrades Against Apartheid: The ANC and the South African Communist Party in Exile

By Tsepo Sechaba and Stephen Ellis

Book Overview

" . . . this book is rich in information, allegation, and argument. Moreover, its forthright tone balances the indulgent piety of much other writing on the ANC and SACP." --SouthScan

" . . . a fascinating and indispensable account of how the inner workings of the South African Communist Party affected its problematic role in and ambiguous impact on the antiapartheid struggle." --Choice

" . . . extraordinary . . . . Possibly the most original contribution in a decade to the literature on South African politics." --Foreign Affairs

Using insider knowledge and previously unavailable information, the authors describe how the Communist Party took over leadership of the ANC during the time when both organizations were banned in South Africa and forced to establish their headquarters in exile. The book also discusses the guerrilla army set up jointly by the two organizations in 1961 under the command of Nelson Mandela.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0253210623
• ISBN13: 9780253210623
• Release Date: March 1992
• Publisher: Indiana University Press
• Length: 214 Pages
• Weight: 0.64 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.3" x 8.5"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

The Struggle Against Apartheid's Dirty Little Secrets

This book illuminates the dark secrets that the ANC preferred not to make public.The facts as described in this important book clarify the extent that the ANC was dominated by the ideologically doctrinaire Communist Party, how divisive internally the ANC became in the wake of skillful South African government countermeasures, and just how far from victory the black movement for freedom was when DeKlerk, a man who has not received his due from history, decided to "un-ban" both the ANC and SACP. I would like to have seen more about the linkage between the collapse of Communism worldwide and the pressures on the South African government, but the focus of this fine book was on the ANC/SACP relationship. And that is not altogether a pleasant story, but it does help to explain why South Africa continues to suffer from internal turmoil now that the apartheid dragon has been slain.