Dreamt of Kgatho, George, I and others racing up a field with green crop and coming down a hill at full gallop. Kgatho falls and is assisted. I wake up as I run to him.
25 APRIL 1977
Journalists, photographers and TV representatives visit island and take photographs of prisoners’ cells and buildings3
4 JUNE 1977
Zami and Zindzi see me for 1½ hrs. Advise that deportation to Brandfort occurred on 16.5.774
11 JULY 1977
Razor blade
22 AUGUST 1977
Letter re shaving cream and 2 cold creams handed in
7 NOVEMBER 1977
Major Zandburg advises that K.D. [Kaiser Matanzima] wishes to visit Madiba [himself] on 2.12.77. Madiba replies that visit must be postponed5
29 DECEMBER 1977
2 100ml. Mentadent tooth paste
6 large Vinolia soap
1 large Vaseline hair oil
1 kg Omo [washing powder]
11 MARCH 1979
DDD Syndrome: debility, dependancy, dread
27 APRIL 1979
Minister Jimmy Kruger visits Island accompanied by G. du Preez. We chat for about ± 15 minutes.6
9 MAY 1979
Consultation with Dr A.C. Neethling, eye-specialist.
Eyesight excellent. Virus infection, but will soon clear no need for new spectacles
20 MAY 1979
Virus again active starts from left eye to the right one
21 MAY 1979
Right eye singularly painful and red
22 MAY 1979
In the afternoon commence with Albucid drops
23 MAY 1979
I dream coming home at night with doors wide open and Zami asleep in one bed and in the other chdn [children], possible Zeni and Zindzi. Many school children outside. I embrace Zami and she orders me to bed.
24 MAY 1979
Start using Albucid 30% eyedrops midday
1 JUNE 1979
‘It’s easy to hope, it’s the wanting that spoils it.’
2 JUNE 1979
In a sick country every step to health is an insult to those who live on its sickness
The purpose of freedom is to create it for others
3 JUNE 1979
Zami and Zazi for 1 hr.7 Zami in red jersey and head gear
Zazi in coat similar to mine
12 JUNE 1979
[In Afrikaans] Gnl. Roux came. Spoke with Brig. Du Plessis.
14 JUNE 1979
21st wedding anniversary
14 JULY 1979
Zeni, Zindzi and Zamaswazi visit for 45 minutes8
Zamaswazi has cold and yells frequently
6 AUGUST 1979
Minister L le Grange visits the prison accompanied by C.O.P. [Commanding Officer of the Prision] Du Preez9
15 SEPTEMBER 1979
Acting Paramount Chief Bambilanga visits me 1.30 hrs10
9 OCTOBER 1979
Interview with Mr A.M. Omar re state vs Sabata Dalindyebo.
17 OCTOBER 1979
Weight without clothes 75 kg
20 OCTOBER 1979
Interview with Zindzi for ±1 hr.
Zindzi looks beautiful and cheerful. Staying with Anne [sic] Tomlinson
21 OCTOBER 1979
Zindzi returns for ±45 minutes. Again looks bright and cheerful. Chat on books and publisher Mike Kirkwood.
5 NOVEMBER 1979
Hospitalised: Minor op. removal of torn tendon on right heel; performed by Dr Breytenbach.
Dream Zindzi and I visit Bara [Baragwanath Hospital] at night. Asked why I instructed a certain lawyer instead of another.
17 NOVEMBER 1979
Zami sees me for ±2 hrs. Pale blue dress – put on reasonable weight and looking really elegant
19 NOVEMBER 1979
POP and stitches removed by Sgt Kaminga. Rather large ossicle removed from right heel by Dr Breitenbach. Anaesthetic Dr C Moss
3 DECEMBER 1979
Letter re purchase [of] slippers addressed to Major Harding
25 DECEMBER 1979
1 hr visit from Zami: Xmas groceries from Pmburg [Pietermaritzburg].
26 DECEMBER 1979
45 minute visit from Zami and Swati. Promises to send 20 photos
3 JANUARY 1980
Reading ‘Black as I am’: Zindzi’s 55 poems. ‘Black and Fourteen’ to be published shortly
To NM in his imprisonment and Nomzamo Mandela in her sentence of silence for the suffering they do for all of us.11
10 JANUARY 1980
New blade
13 JANUARY 1980
Milk for Tea
26 JANUARY 1980
Visited by Zami for ± 45 minutes. She complains that Madiba looks tired.
13 MARCH 1980
Swati’s 1st birthday
19 MARCH 1980
Received Zami’s telegram re Lily’s [Lilian Ngoyi] death
20 MARCH 1980
Sent condolence telegram (urgent) to Edith Ngoyi12
14 MAY 1980
Mrs Helen Suzman MP comes with Gen. Roux.13 Interview for ±1 hr.
23 MAY 1980
Consultation with Dr. A.L. Maresky pronounces me in good condition. Heart better than the last time he examined me.
Dreamt returning home late at night, almost at dawn. Embraced sickly Zami as she enters the backdoor of our Orlando home. Zeni is about 2 yrs and has swallowed a razor blade which she vomits out. I spank her for it.
25 MAY 1980
Dream about Zami, Zeni and Zindzi. Zeni is about 2 yrs. Zindzi asks me to kiss her and remarks that I am not warm enough. Zeni also asks me to do so.
8 JUNE 1980
Zami returns cheerful in blue garment.
9 JUNE 1980
Balance R41.44
24 JUNE 1980
Sgt Kamminga takes blood pressure 180/90
30 JUNE 1980
Examined by Dr Kaplan BP. 120/80 weight taken 78 kg. Also read to me Dr Maresky report on cardiograph.
12 JULY 1980
Zami, Zindzi and Zobuhle fail to turn up because of rough weather
13 JULY 1980
Zami, Zindzi and Zobuhle turn up on extended visit14
Announcement of death of Sir Seretse Khama
24 AUGUST 1980
Buthi and Kgatho,15 the first time I see Kgatho with tie on.
7 SEPTEMBER 1980
250g Nescafe R4.10
Mustard Sauce 54 cents
Trims 45
Coconut cookies 54
Sandwich spread 71
Marmite 55
Fray Bentos 55
Game lemon 26
Cake mixture 250g 38
14 SEPTEMBER 1980
Zami and Oupa. Zami in maroon dress and a gold plated pendant looks lovely. Oupa in a suit (black) with white stripes16
10 OCTOBER 1980
73, 000 people sign petition for the release of N.M.
11 OCTOBER 1980
Prisoners’ Day17
27 OCTOBER 1980
Documents removed without my consent by W/O Pienaar
3 NOVEMBER 1980
M-Drive in Zimbabwe: The Free-M[andela] at the University of Zimbabwe has collected 600 signatures petitioning for his release
Clifford Mashiri the organiser
28 NOVEMBER 1980
[In Afrikaans] As long as the Afrikaners think they are the super race and have a right to force solutions on others, the future will remain bleak.
Concept of Bantu Education carries with it a stigma.18 No system however improved, will ever be accepted as long as it is a racially separate one
25 DECEMBER 1980
Zami, Zindzi and Zobuhle visit RI [Robben Island] for ±1 hr. Both dressed in light gear. Promised to pose for Ayesha [Arnold]: Commemoration in Dbn [Durban]. Nehru Award19
Tape of Indira Gandhi’s address did not arrive
22 JANUARY 1981
Primrose oil lowers blood pressure, cholesterol level and overweight
N.Ms supporters included senior don: P
rof Barbara Hardy and current affairs commentator Jonathan Dimbleby20
1 APRIL 1981
Mandela documentary: BBC producer Frank Cox, who made the TV drama documentary on editor Donald Woods escape from SA [South Africa], is planning a TV drama documentary on N.M. [Nelson Mandela] for filming in June.
Casting for white and black South African actors starts in June. The programme will run for 50 minutes and will be part of a series of 3 on the subject of human rights. The programme will be filmed on a mock-up Robben Island somewhere in Britain
3 APRIL 1981
Bishop [Desmond] Tutu speaks in Committee Room of House of Commons at culmination of Release M campaign.21 Present Michael Foot,22 David Steel.23 Petition endorsed by 94 MPs, 25 peers, 30 leading churchmen including 19 bishops, and 98 professors, 500 organisations representing estimated 12,000,000
5 MAY 1981
IRA [Irish Republican Army] martyr Bobby Sands dies
10 MAY 1981
Zami and Swati ±10am: Swati bangs on glass partition shouting, ‘Open, open!’ Finally she cries and is finally removed by Mda’s sister
17 MAY 1981
Number of prisoners who are studying
Std
V 29
JC
102
Matric
127
Degree
59
Diploma
17
Total
334
30% of them do not sit for the examination
5 AUGUST 1981
Dr Ekwueme (Alex) Vice-President of Nigeria receives the freedom of Glasgow on behalf of NM from the Lord Provost Mr Michael Kelly. The scroll conferring the honour known as the Burgess Ticket will be kept safely in Govt House in Lagos. ‘When M gains his freedom in, I hope, the not too distant future, he will be able to come to Lagos to receive it.’
15 AUGUST 1981
Zami and Zobuhle: I kiss Zobuhle against partition glass and speak to her by telephone. She fusses around and makes conversation with Zami absolutely impossible. We decide she should not return the following day.
19 AUGUST 1981
Anthony Bobby Tsotsobe, 25
Johannes Shabangu, 28
David Moise
sentenced to death by Judge Theron (Charl).24 ‘Long live the spirit of the toiling masses of SA, long live the spirit of international mankind, long live NM; long live Solomon Mahlangu!’25
26 SEPTEMBER 1981
Zami spends her 45th birthday with us. Reports intensive harassment of herself and family by SAP [South African Police] re Zindzi’s passport and Mabitsela’s living at home.26
Zeni and Zindzi leaving for Rio de Janeiro, USA and Madrid on 9.10.81
19 NOVEMBER 1981
[Griffiths] Mxenge murdered27
14 DECEMBER 1981
Commanding Officer informs me that Zami involved in car accident in Mt. Ayliff. Sustained serious neck, shoulder and rib injury. Also a 14 yr old Madikizela girl. Hospitalised in Kokstad. Might be transferred to Durban. Telegram of good wishes immediately dispatched.
6 JANUARY 1982
Bomb blast in Soweto and rocked the Orlando Community Hall about 9 pm, shattered windows of neighbouring houses, cracked walls: second blast in the area
28 JANUARY 1982
Zami’s banishment to Brandfort and house-arrest there renewed for another year
30 JANUARY 1982
Zami’s left hand still in plaster. She looks quite unwell. New cast put by Bloemfontein orthopaedic surgeon, Dr Shipley. Will see him on Feb. 10 and if no improvement might operate.
31 JANUARY 1982
Zami returns wearing sunglasses. Will post photos of Thembi’s wedding on Monday morning.
26 MARCH 1982
Tom Lodge: ‘Black Resistance Politics in S.A 1948–1981’
[Mandela is suddenly moved to Pollsmoor Prison on the mainland on 30 March 1982]
24 APRIL 1982
Zami visits me at Pollsmoor, accompanied by Mr Allister Sparks but he is not allowed to come in.28
25 APRIL 1982
Zami returns again accompanied by A.S. She looks very well. Plans to return next month.
5 MAY 1982
Packet of Bisto [powdered gravy] given to kitchens by Adj [Adjutant] Terblanche with instruction that one teaspoon be used on Wednesdays only. First teaspoon used
12 MAY 1982
One teaspoon of Bisto used for second time
17 MAY 1982
Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers (London) is to give R1800 to Zami so that she can visit Madiba. Zami was able to visit Madiba last month, thanks to the generosity of a Dorset woman, Mrs Majorie Ruck
26 JUNE 1982
Zami in fawn coat reports on death threats and attempt to bomb the combi [minibus]: accompanied by Mabitsela but he did not enter cubicle
1 AUGUST 1982
Birthday card to Ayesha [Arnold]
7 AUGUST 1982
Maki (intended visit applied for on 30th April). Maki did come for one hour and staying at Cowley House
8 AUGUST 1982
Maki for 30 minutes. Two front teeth pulled out and one on the side.
17 AUGUST 1982
[In Afrikaans, presumably from a newspaper cutting] A letter bomb has claimed the life of Ruth First: Ruth First, an official of the banned ANC [African National Congress] died in Maputo after a letter bomb exploded in her hands. The incident happened at the university’s Centre for African Studies where she worked, according to the official news agency, Angop. The other people in the vicinity included the Centre’s director Mr Aquino de Braganca, who was injured in the explosion, said a family member of his family. Apparently one of Pres. Samora Machel’s advisors said he was not seriously injured.
Books by her: 177 days, The Barrel of a Gun, a study of military rule in Africa, A Biography of Olive Schreiner, and A Study of Modern Libya [possibly Libya: The Elusive Revolution].
21 AUGUST 1982
King Sobhuza dies at the age of 8329
25 SEPTEMBER 1982
Zami wearing an outfit, present from Kenya’s Ngugi30
2 OCTOBER 1982
Dream of Zami and me eating from one dish… After only a few spoons I left to attend to some urgent business, hoping to return soon and continue eating out of the common dish. Alas, I was delayed for several hrs and became acutely worried over your reaction and anxiety. It was a medley of dreams. Hobdozela falling down a steep bank into a river with a member of family on his back.
2 DECEMBER 1982
Breyten Breytenbach released from Pollsmoor Prison31
4 JANUARY 1983
Former British Liberal Party leader, Mr Jeremy Thorpe met Zenani while on a business trip to Swaziland.32 Mr Thorpe, who is promoting a plan to built low-cost houses with highly compressed grasses, discussed Zami’s house arrest and her hubby’s imprisonment.
7 JANUARY 1983
Zami raided by police in 3 hr search by 6 police vehicles in presence of Helen Suzman M.P., and Peter Soal M.P.33 Served with summons for allegedly breaking a banning order. They confiscated posters, books, documents and bed spread. Also photographed 6 patients attending mobile health clinic.
31 JANUARY 1983
Sowetan. 31.1.83: Security Police took her bed cover – senators plan to replace it. Powerful members of the U.S. Congress will replace the bedspread SA Security policemen seized from Mrs W.M. [Winnie Mandela] recently. The new bedspread will be presented to the wife of the ANC [African National Congress] leader as a symbol of Congressional concern over civil rights abuses in SA.
2 FEBRUARY 1983
Admitted to Woodstock Hospital
3 FEBRUARY 1983
Operation conducted on the back of head and on right-hand toe.
5 FEBRUARY 1983
Zindzi looks bright and cheerful
14 FEBRUARY 1983
W/O Van Zyl takes out stitches in head wound
15 FEBRUARY 1983
Sister Ferreira, Woodstock Hospital, takes out stitch i
n big toe: Dr Stein points out that report from medical laboratories indicates that there was no sign of malignancy in the toe.
21 MARCH 1983
Ancient Olympia: Jailed black SA leader, N.M, was made an honorary citizen of the Greek village
22 MARCH 1983
The Anti-apartheid Committee Movement and the UN Committee Against Apartheid yesterday published a declaration carrying more than 4 000 signatures urging the release of ANC leader, NM.
24 MARCH 1983
A.N.C. leader to get award: City College of N.Y. [New York] has awarded N.M. doctorate in law for ‘unselfish commitment to principles of freedom and justice’. Dr Bernard Harleston, president of varsity. ‘Award will be made in June.’
29 MARCH 1983
Zami invited to attend opening of Parliament in Bonn on 29 March by Die Grunenim [sic]. Sowetan reports. The street in Camden, North London, where the anti-apartheid movement has its new headquarters is to be renamed Mandela Street in honour of the imprisoned leader of the ANC. It is currently called Selous Street after the British explorer who helped Cecil John Rhodes bring Rhodesia under colonial rule.34
Conversations with Myself Page 20
