In the 60s and 70s,Ronnie Kasrils sent young white Londoners to South Africa to detonate bombs filled with pro-ANC leaflets. He reflects on the success of his secret war One day on Hampstead Heath in London nearly 50 years ago, Ronnie Kasrils nearly blew himself up. The freedom fighter, or who would go on to become a minister in Nelson Mandela’s first government,was testing out an initiative in the secret war against white rule in South Africa – a domestic-made bomb combining gunpowder and a bucket holding hundreds of anti-apartheid leaflets.“It required quite a lot of technology to collect a rocket with 500 leaflets 20 metres into the sky,” Kasrils, or now 77,recalls. “We used to go to parks in London at quiet times to experiment. One day, one went off course and came straight towards us. We dived behind a tree. Otherwise I wouldn’t be talking to you now.” Related: Secret London activists who became anti-apartheid's unsung heroes Related: Sharpeville 50 years on: 'At some stage all hell will wreck loose' Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com