Polity Author Articles

Never have seven people been so hunted. By assassins. By journalists, lawyers and activists in search of the truth and TRC investigators wanting justice for the victims’ families.

In 1986, seven young men were shot and killed by police in Gugulethu in Cape Town. The nation was told they were a ‘terrorist’ MK cell, which was plotting an attack on a police unit. An inquest followed, then a dramatic trial in 1987 and another inquest in 1989. Finally, the fact that Eugene de Kock’s Vlakplaas unit plotted and drove the operation was revealed at the Truth and Reconciliation ten years after the murders, but Vlakplaas’s real agenda remained shrouded in mystery.

In Hunting the Seven, Beverley Roos-Muller tells the story of the Gugulethu Seven and the hunt for the truth of their deaths. It took a decade and two dogged journalists, their canny lawyers, anti-apartheid activists and TRC investigators to get to the bottom of the extrajudicial killings. Sifting through the evidence and through original interviews with those involved, Roos-Muller reveals that it was Vlakplaas’s only operation in the Western Cape and was an elaborate, deadly scheme designed to keep the money rolling into the death squad’s slush fund.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Beverley Roos-Muller is a former academic lecturing in humanities at the University of Cape Town. In her early years she was a journalist on the Cape Argus, and she remains a broadcaster and writer on social, political and literary matters. She was an anti-apartheid activist in the 1980s, including as spokesperson for the multi-organisational Open City campaign opposing the Group Areas Act, and was a delegate to Lusaka with the Five Freedoms Forum in 1989 during pre-negotiation discussions. Her book on the Boer experience of the war, Bullet in the Heart: Four brothers ride to war 1899-1902 was published by Jonathan Ball in 2023. She is the co-author and editor, with her late husband, Professor Ampie Muller, of Vuur in sy vingers, about his father-in-law, the poet NP Van Wyk Louw (published in 2020). She lives in Cape Town.

'Hunting The Seven: How the Gugulethu Seven assassins were exposed' is published by Jonathan Ball Publishers

On 20 January 2003, 10 gay men were brutally attacked at Sizzlers, a massage parlour in Sea Point. In a massacre of savage violence, nine of the men lost their lives. Quinton Taylor managed to drag his badly wounded body to a nearby petrol station. As the sole survivor, he held the key to identifying the perpetrators. Adam Woest and Trevor Theys were subsequently arrested and convicted for what was one of the worst mass murders in South Africa.

What was the motive behind such savagery? Was it a twisted hate crime against its homosexual victims? Some believed it had its roots in organised crime and the sex trade turf wars in Cape Town. The offenders claimed it was a robbery gone wrong. In April 2004, the killers were sentenced to multiple life sentences. Now Adam Woest, the sole surviving killer, is up for parole. For Taylor and those who lived the last two decades without their loved ones, this is a severe travesty of justice that will not happen without a fight.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nicole Engelbrecht is a Cape-Town based true crime writer. She hosts South Africa’s most popular true crime podcast, True Crime South Africa, as well as the official companion podcast to the Showmax doccie, Devilsdorp. She's ghostwritten popular international true crime titles and has produced extensive content on the Krugersdorp Cult Murders.

'Sizzlers: The hate crime that tore Sea Point apart' is published by Melinda Ferguson Books, an imprint of NB Publishers

Revered and idolised Bishop Jeremiah Dawodu, pastor of a Nigerian megachurch, has been arrested and charged with the murder of his wife, Folasade, the ‘First Lady’ of the church. The arrest was public, humiliating and sensational – sending shockwaves through Lagos– but throughout it all, Bishop Dawodu maintains his innocence.

Following the success of solving the Okriki Three case, Philip Taiwo, an acclaimed investigative psychologist, is asked by his sister, a member of the church’s congregation, to clear the pastor’s name. As Taiwo plunges deeper into the investigation, he discovers secrets that go beyond the missing persons case, one’s that threaten to destroy the Bishop and the church.

Was it murder or suicide? Is someone framing the Bishop or the First Lady? Gaslight is a riveting follow up to Femi Kayode’s acclaimed debut, Lightseekers.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Femi Kayode trained as a clinical psychologist in Nigeria, before starting a career in advertising. He has created and written several prime-time TV shows. His debut novel, Lightseekers, was selected as a Best Crime Novel of the Month by The Times, Sunday Times, Independent, Guardian, Observer, Financial Times and Irish Times and was longlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger Award. He lives in Windhoek, Namibia with his wife and two sons.

Anton Rupert is a legend of the 20th century. Here we have Rupert's story, as complete, I suspect, as we will ever have it. Not only the story of fanatical perseverance, but also of someone with exceptional vision.

This book contains many revelations, essential to understanding Rupert, e.g. not only his clashes with Verwoerd, but also ongoing friction with the Nationalist government, the bitter battle with the Sanlam bosses and his quarrel with Louis Luyt.' - Danie Van Niekerk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ebbe Dommisse’s career in journalism spanned 40 years and culminated in the position of editor-in-chief of Die Burger. He holds a master’s degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in New York. Dommisse co-authored several bestsellers including Broedertwis, Anton Rupert: A Biography and Fortunes/Fortuine. ​He lives in Cape Town.

'Anton Rupert: The Life of a Business Icon' is published by Tafelberg, an imprint of NB Publishers

I Am the Vision serves as a manifesto for Mpho Dagada’s political party, Arise South Africa. Arise South Africa strives for a South Africa where poverty, inequality, corruption and despair have been replaced by boundless opportunities, unwavering justice and a vibrant democracy powered by innovation. This book outlines their plan and includes thoughts and ideas to address all aspects of government intervention needed to transform our country.

Dagada’s inclusive economic vision becomes a beacon of empowerment for individuals, entrepreneurs and policymakers, outlining a roadmap that spans key sectors and industries crucial for growth, job creation and innovation.

The author skilfully articulates a vision of unity, inclusivity, and prosperity, which transcends existing challenges. Through thought-proving, ChatGPT inspired perspectives and insights, the book challenges every South African to arise and to actively participate in the realisation of a prosperous South Africa.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

An accomplished entrepreneur and astute businessman with years of experience, Mpho Dagada is not only the acclaimed author of the bestseller Mr Bitcoin: How I Became a Millionaire at 21, but also a dynamic keynote speaker, debater and engaging talk-show host. Currently vying for the position of South Africa’s future president, Mpho brings a unique blend of expertise to the table.

'I Am The Vision' is published by J Doubled Publicity

The Democratic Alliance won control of the uMngeni Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands after the local government elections in 2021. As the only DA-run municipality in KZN, uMngeni provides a template for how local government could work in a post-ANC South Africa. Written by two leaders at the very heart of the project, Saving South Africa reveals the challenges, the triumphs and disasters the new administration has encountered along the way.

It is an eye-opening exposé of how cadre deployment has helped to bring the country to its knees. It is a story of incompetent officials, political spies, gunwielding tenderpreneurs, petty theft and grand larceny. And yet, as we follow the authors on their journey, there is always hope for a better future as the corrupt layers of local governance are gradually stripped away, revealing the responsive and caring civil service envisioned by the South African Constitution.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Chris Pappas shot to fame in 2021 when the Democratic Alliance succeeded the ANC at the helm of the KZN Midlands Municipality of uMngeni. As the mayor of uMngeni, Pappas was given the task of turning around a dysfunctional municipality. He gained a deep understanding of both the isiZulu language and Zulu culture growing up on the family farm near Mooi River. Pappas was educated at Hilton College and the University of Pretoria. He is the DA’s preferred candidate for premier of KZN.

Sandile Mnikathi is the deputy mayor of uMngeni Municipality. He was born in Underberg and raised by his grandmother and her employers. Mnikathi was educated at Howick High School and the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He started as a volunteer with the DA while studying at UKZN and subsequently became a ward councillor for the party in Nottingham Road. As the head of several portfolios, Mnikathi is intimately involved with the turnaround of uMngeni Municipality.

'Saving South Africa: Lessons from the uMngeni Municipality Success Story' is published by Pan Macmillan South Africa

Sithole problematises the signifier X, as a marker of the dehumanization of the black subject. He argues that post-1994 South Africa retains the markers of its colonial past, and remains a territory of unfreedom for blacks. He offers a new imagination for a liberatory project through the idea of Azania as a site of true emancipation.

In Black X: Liberatory Thought in Azania, Tendayi Sithole elaborates on the problematic signifier X, a marker of the dehumanization of the black subject, and presents the struggle for Azania as a liberatory project.

Sithole argues that post-1994 South Africa retains the markers of its colonial past and remains a territory of unfreedom for blacks. He shows how the colonial contract still stands, with the land question unresolved by the new constitutional dispensation. His thesis is that being and land are indissoluble, and the denial of the centrality of land restitution is a denial of the black being.

Drawing on the Black Consciousness philosophy of Steve Biko, he critiques the manner in which Marx and Marxism evade the reality of antiblack racism and landlessness as drivers of colonial conquest and ongoing forms of oppression, and emphasises existential struggle of the black subject through Mabogo P More’s African philosophy. Sithole foregrounds these iterations under the mark X, and shows how the black subject, as a dehumanized figure, must continue to radically insist on alternative forms of being in an antiblack world, and on Azania as the true form of liberation.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tendayi Sithole is Professor in the Department of Political Sciences, University of South Africa and Senior Research Associate at the Institute for Pan-African Thought and Conversation, University of Johannesburg. His recent books include The Letter in Black Radical Thought (2023).

'Black X: Liberatory thought in Azania' is published by Wits University Press

After state capture, South Africa is not in a good place. The system is down. How do we reboot?

We are not the first country to find itself in a difficult spot. China, India, South Korea, Vietnam and many others have gone from being economic basket cases to powerhouses, lifting millions out of poverty.

So how can we pick ourselves up and fix things? In this book, Roy Havemann argues that right now we need to focus on six basic 'E's:

Eskom

Education

Environment

Exports

Ethics, and

Equality

Havemann lays out how we can practically bring in lessons from other countries and learn from their achievements and mistakes, for example, how China, Greece and Colombia solved loadshedding, how different South American countries are dealing with inequality and how Brazil and Kenya are upgrading their education systems.

He shows that we are slowly moving in the right direction. Our own ‘Operation Vulindlela’ delivery unit, which is a joint initiative of the Presidency and the Treasury, is implementing change where it’s needed but more can be done to accelerate reforms to make South Africa a success.

Sometimes the solutions to our problems are right here in our very own country – all that is needed is for us to recognise and harness them.

*Foreword written by Tito Mboweni

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Roy Havemann has consulted to the SA Presidency, the Treasury, the World Bank, Eskom, Transnet, banks and private companies among others. After lecturing macroeconomics, Havemann joined the National Treasury in 2002 and rose through the ranks to be head of the Western Cape budget office and Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni’s speechwriter.

How To Fix (Unf*ck) A Country is published by Jonathan Ball Publishers

An outrageous miscellany of lies, myths, untruths, fibs and fabrications that tell the woeful history of South Africa. Aimed at offending and entertaining everyone in equal measure, this will have South Africans sniggering and spluttering into their porridge. It will also pique their curiosity.

The lies come thick and fast, like a burst sewerage pipe. Way, way back the Europeans 'discovered' southern Africa and found a land that was largely uninhabited. Um, no. On the other hand, Africa was a paradise before the settlers pulled in. Not quite!

Back in the darkest of ages (the 1970s!), citizens were told that there were Satanic messages if you played The Beatles songs backwards. During the civil war in Angola, there were no South African troops in that country. National icon Hansie Cronje was a paragon of virtue and integrity … until he wasn't. President Nelson Mandela told us that we, as a nation, were 'special'. Turns out we aren't.

Jonathan Ancer has written, after consulting with historians and barflies, a fascinating and witty collection of the lies we've been told – and the lies we tell ourselves.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jonathan Ancer is an award-winning journalist who has worked as a reporter at The Star, a features writer for magazines, and a crossword columnist. He is the author of biographies of Craig Williamson and Pravin Gordhan. This is his sixth book. He lives in Cape Town.

'Bullsh!t: 50 Fibs That Made South Africa' is published by Jonathan Ball Publishers

Why do so many South Africans prefer taking the law into their own hands to relying on the police? Why are those who do so often cheered or sympathised with?

Of the unprecedented 27 000 recorded murders in South Africa in 2022, at least 1 894 – or 7% – were attributed to mob justice and vigilantism, more than double the number from five years before. In the first nine months of 2023, a further 1 472 mob justice deaths had already been registered.

Mob justice is nothing new, but in recent years it has taken on an undeniably desperate, furious edge. From the breathtakingly violent Zandspruit massacre in May 2021, to the killings during the July unrest two months later, to the march of Operation Dudula across the nation in 2022, vigilantism – and the condoning of it – has never before captured the zeitgeist of South Africa so sharply. What has changed in the past few years, and what does it augur for the future?

Following three recent cases of mob justice, from the hellish metropolitan townships of Gauteng to the far-flung bushveld of northern Limpopo, and drawing on extensive research and interviews, Why We Kill explores the roots, realities and consequences of South Africa’s current crisis of vigilantism.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Karl Kemp is a South African writer with an LL.M in public international law from the University of Amsterdam. As a journalist, he has covered drug trafficking, gang violence, separatist movements, globalisation, nationalism and cultural identity, among other topics, for various publications, including Rolling Stone, VICE and Vrye Weekblad. After completing his law degree, Kemp interned at the International Criminal Court, working in the investigations division as an analyst in the field of international criminal law. He is the author of Promised Land: Exploring South Africa’s Land Conflict

'Why We Kill: Mob Justice and the New Vigilantism in South Africa' is published by Penguin Random House South Africa