This day in history: Helen Suzman visits Mandela in Pollsmoor Prison
- On this day 32 years ago, Nelson Mandela was visited by Helen Suzman at prison
- Mandela was serving a life sentence at Pollsmoor Prison after he was transferred there from Robben Island
- An official Facebook page for Madiba posted a snap of the former president with Suzman, as well as her entry in the visitors' book
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On 12 June, 1964, Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life imprisonment alongside two of his co-accused.
For 18 years, Madiba was in the Robben Island prison before he was transferred to Pollsmoor Prison in Tokai, Cape Town, along with senior ANC leaders Walter Sisulu, Andrew Mlangeni, Ahmed Kathrada, and Raymond Mhlaba.
During his time at Pollsmoor, Mandela received several visits - including from anti-apartheid activist Helen Suzman.
A Facebook group in honour of Mandela shared on this day, in 1988, Suzman paid the first democratic president of South Africa a visit.
The page posted two photos - one showing Madiba and Suzman together and another one showing a record of the struggle icon's visit to Pollsmoor.
The post was captioned:
"On this day, 2 September 1988 Nelson Mandela was visited in Pollsmoor Prison by the late anti-apartheid activist and politician Helen Suzman."
Source: Facebook
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Source: Facebook
Suzman was an anti-apartheid activist and politician. She hosted the meeting that founded the Progressive Party in 1959, Wikipedia reported.
The politician also played an important role in improving prison conditions for members of the banned ANC, including Madiba. For the part she played in ending apartheid, Suzman was nominated twice for a Nobel Peace Prize.
In other news, Briefly.co.za reported veteran Democratic Alliance Gauteng leader John Moodey has decided to resign from the nation's opposition party. During a media briefing from his personal residence on Wednesday, Moodey explained that he no longer felt like the DA was his political home:
"I'm deeply saddened, uncomfortable and I am no longer at home in the DA."
Moodey was campaigning for the opposition party's top spot with the position of leader set to be filled during the DA's October conference. Despite setting his sights on this post, Moodey explained that he simply couldn't stomach Helen Zille's controversial comments on race and the party's answering silence.
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Source: Briefly News
