This covers the assassination of Chris Hani (an anti-apartheid activist) and the fallout that resulted, which proved to be a pivotal moment in South Africa’s history.

This is an important historical event that needs to be known and I’m glad the author took time to write this book. The story is pretty easy to follow, but there is quite a bit of repetition. It left me with a few questions, but it’s worth a read.

Title: The Plot to Save South Africa
Author: Justice Malala
Release Date: April 4th, 2023
Page Count: 344
Format: Netgalley and Audiobook
Start Date: April 9th, 2023
Finish Date: April 10th, 2023

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

When I first got this book, I was eager to read it. I am always wanting to learn as much about history and other countries as I can. I did have concerns about it going over my head. I was convinced I'd have to do a lot of research and ask a friend of mine many questions to fully understand. I was wrong. This book was very easy to follow along and understand. I actually hope to read it again to make notes and annotations on parts that really jump out at me. I do recommend this book to anybody that has an interest in history and nonfiction books. It's really good and well worth the read.

Important to Note: Nonfiction. Violence. Real World Issues.

In South Africa just before Easter in 1993, Nelson Mandela’s protégé, Chris Hani, was assassinated by white supremacist Janusz Walus. During the next nine days, Mandela and his team of leaders of the African National Congress (ANC) worked long hours to quell the rage and despair of Black South Africans. The Plot to Save South Africa recounts Hani’s death and the deft political moves Mandela undertook to keep talks of ending apartheid from collapsing.

Author Justice Malala was a rookie reporter and arrived at the newsroom early on that Saturday of what would eventually become the day of Hani’s murder. With vivid retellings from his own memory as well as recounting details from extensive interviews of many key figures, Malala takes readers through the hours and days after Chris Hani died. Hani was important to Nelson Mandela not only as a figure for Black youth in South Africa but also because Mandela looked at Hani as a son.

When Hani was killed, Mandela had to focus all of his energy on what Hani’s death represented and how to turn a tragedy into a triumph for the ultimate goal: a fair and free election for everyone that would allow Black South Africans to elect their leaders.

Hani’s death came only three years after Mandela was freed from a 27-year prison term. A former militant and guerilla fighter, Chris Hani had pivoted his approach and begun encouraging political change by peaceful means. Mandela depended on Hani to appeal to the youth and saw the positive effects of Hani’s presence. His assassination by a white supremacist threatened to undo all of the painstaking work by Mandela and everyone at the ANC.

The book offers insight into the many, many meetings and rallies that took place in that nine-day period. Violence and riots also blew across the nation, and white supremacist leaders used the opportunity to sow discord. But South African president F.W. de Klerk was losing his grip on his cabinet and government, and at crucial times when the nation needed to hear from him he either didn’t speak or delivered a message that completely missed the point.

Malala’s memoir showcases the immediacy and description of someone who has lived through a major historical event. Readers will be able to hear the cries for justice by Black South Africans and the pushback in raised voices by apartheid champions. In attempting to fill in crucial details for those unfamiliar with the tragedy, however, Malala spends too much time looping in back stories and intersection points of everyone involved in Hani’s death. The book, in parts, is a compelling read but might take some patience and concentration to finish.

Very interesting book.

Like most non-fiction books though, the storytelling was a bit dry. This is a really important story to tell although I was hoping for more analysis rather than a straight retelling.

The Plot To Save South Africa, by Justice Malala

Fascinating, but Frustrating

This story of a pivotal point in South Africa’s struggle toward inclusive democracy could have read like a political thriller, but is hampered by too much detail and repetition.

The publication date is almost exactly 30 years since Chris Hani, Nelson Mandela’s protégé, was assassinated by an extreme right-wing faction. It was a desperate effort by White ultra-conservatives to end the renewed peace talks between the wide range of political parties in South Africa, from the conservative to the more radical anti-apartheid groups.

Hani, more militant than Mandela, a former guerilla fighter and a hero to Black South African youth, had turned his influence to supporting peace. The process had been stalled, and was just beginning to inch forward, when he was deliberately killed. His murderers hoped his death would spark clashes and riots that would end all chances of peace between Whites and Blacks.

The author, a rookie journalist who was on the first day of his job, weaves together his own and other contemporaneous reports with much later interviews from key players, such as one in 2018 with W.F. De Klerk, the South African president who freed Mandela and other political prisoners and committed to peace talks. Thus, there is both immediacy and perspective in this account.

There also are great descriptions of leadership under pressure, with insights into Nelson Mandela’s actions and reactions during an especially fraught time, and the inclusion of lesser known but vital other figures, on all sides of events.

The story is necessarily of great scope, but its telling would have benefitted from fewer details. Sub-plots made it difficult to follow the larger tale. In addition, there was much repetition, for example, introducing characters more than once, often using the same adjectives each time. This diluted the otherwise gripping tale, and made it harder to follow.

It also raised issues that were compelling, but not addressed: For example, why was Hani buried at an all-White cemetery? With so many White, right-wing hard-liners in the National Party, why did they agree to an inclusive Transitional Executive Committee, thus giving up much power?

The book is worth reading, for the content, but is frustrating in its presentation. Because of this, I cannot give a high recommendation for what could have been a fascinating account.