Ultimate Guide To Africa June 2015 | Page 71

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W

hen
Robin
Renwick
was
appointed British
ambassador
to
South
Africa in 1987, he formed a
deep friendship with Helen
Suzman. Now, drawing on
Suzman’s personal papers,
Renwick sets out to capture
the qualities of the woman
who, in the face of the
hostility of the apartheid
regime, carved out a unique
role for herself as an intrepid
fighter for human rights,
simple justice and the
rights of prisoners and the
disenfranchised majority.
Suzman’s
steely
determination in pursuit of
these principles earned her
the admiration of millions
of South Africans, black and
white. As she memorably
said: “Like everybody else, I
long to be loved. But I am
not prepared to make any
concessions whatsoever.’”
In Bright Star in a Dark
Chamber, Renwick recalls
Suzman’s biting wit and
fierce intelligence, and the
close friendship she formed
with Nelson Mandela while
he was still behind prison
bars.

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