A Double-Edged Sword: A Quest for a Place in the African Sun 3rd Edition
Author(s): Phathekile Holomisa (Author)
Publisher: Real African Publishers
Publication Date: 15 Oct. 2011
Edition: 3rd
Language: English
Print length: 304 pages
ISBN-10: 0986996807
ISBN-13: 9780986996801
Book Description
In the words of the author, “”this book addresses an era that has since gone by, yet, in my humble view, it remains relevant to those who are interested in the recent history of the position of the institution of traditional leadership, especially at the time of transition from apartheid to democracy.”” When the late Professor Fatima Meer, then at the University of Natal, came across a file containing some documents pertaining to Holomisa’s involvement in the activities of the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa (Contralesa) she immediately insisted that he publish it in book form, an idea that was also strongly supported by Dr Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.
The book consists of three parts: Part 1: The Consolidation of Contralesa Part 2: Speeches and Addresses by Nkosi Holomisa Part 3: Contralesa statements A biographical profile of, and note from, the author; an editorial note by Professor Pearl Mpile Sithole of the University of KwaZulu-Natal; a Foreword by President Jacob Zuma; a list of acronyms used in the book; an introduction by Dr Winnie Madikizela Mandela; a prologue by the author; three sections of photographs of prominent South African monarchs; an appendices; an epilogue and genealogical trees of South Africa’s monarchs make this book a most comprehensive study of Contralesa’s role in the era of the mass Democratic Movement’s struggles in the late 1980s, the period of the unbanning of liberation movements and the release of their leaders from jail, as well as the post-1994 era of Nelson Mandela.
Editorial Reviews
Review
This book meticulously takes the reader through the formation of the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa, and the critical role it played in the liberation struggle, as a body independent of the African National Congress, but sharing a common view of the establishment of a free, unitary, non-racial and democratic South Africa. Contralesa holds a very special place in the history of the Congress Movement and the struggle for liberation for its role in organising traditional leaders during a very difficult period in our history. – President Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma.
About the Author
Sango Phathekile Holomisa (Ah! Dilizintaba) was born on August 26, 1959, at Ngqungqu Great Place, Mqanduli, Transkei, in the Eastern Cape. His parents were the late Nkosi Mathathisa Moses Holomisa (Ah! Jongisizwe) and Nkosikazi Nokuphila Phyllis Holomisa (Ah! Noumile) of the Hegebe Clan of the Thembu Nation. He attended primary and secondary school in the Transkei, completed his Bacholor of Arts degree at the University of Transkei (now Walter Sisulu University) and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree at the University of Natal (now University of KwaZulu—Natal). He is an advocate of the High Court of South Africa and a founder member of the National Association of Democratic Lawyers (NADEL). He joined the ANC in 1985 and has been a member of Parliament since 1994. He is Head of the Hegebe Traditional Council and has been President of the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa (Contralesa) since 1990, an organisation he joined in 1989. In 2002 he was elected Chairperson of the Southern African Development Community Council of Traditional Leaders (SADCCTL). He is the author of a second book, According to Tradition and is an occasional columnist for some of South Africa’s leading publications.
Wow! eBook
