Book Review – Inside Apartheid’s Prison

by Raymond Suttner (Jacana Media) ISBN 978-1-4314-2517-4

So immersed had I become in Raymond Suttner’s life’s story, written in jail, that I forgot time flies and that it is now 2017. Not the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s when people were fighting all over South Africa to bring Apartheid to an end.

Page after page deals with Raymond’s hardships in prison. When he was interrogated by the police, I felt helpless, as if I were a spectator, reading of the insufferable tortures he endured. I was amazed by the strength of mind that helped him endure all the atrocities.

After his release in 1983, he escalated his activities and became a target. To his horror he landed up in the infamous John Vorster Square. Family and friends all stood by him and he drew courage from their visits and guarded letters. He was under house arrest until his second release.

Raymond Suttner is one of a small number of white comrades who played a substantial role in bringing Apartheid to an end. His memoir is a must-read.

Trained in law, Raymond Suttner has obtained a PHD in History, Sociology and Political studies. He is currently emeritus professor at the University of South Africa and Rhodes University in Grahamstown.

Dee Andrew
5/5

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