Stephen Ellis’ External Mission: The ANC in Exile Launched at The Book Lounge

by Claire on Nov 14th, 2012

“There’s a standard version of how the armed struggle came about,” said author and academic, Stephen Ellis, addressing an enthusiastic crowd that filled the available seating downstairs at The Book Lounge for the launch of his book External Mission: The ANC in Exile, last night. According to him, the well known version found in Mandela’s Long Walk to Freedom, is not the full story.

“I wrote this book because South Africans need to be informed about this organisation,” he said. “Times have changed. Knowing the ANC much better, there is more interest in its recent history.”

Looking in the archives, he realised that Mandela’s version is “only a part of the story. Even in the late 1950s there were some in South Africa who decided that the armed struggle was inevitable”.

He spoke about consulting ANC archives, which are located at the University of Fort Hare, the State Archives and Military Archives, as well as archives located in Botswana, where ANC members were in exile. Ellis also had at his disposal the private papers of many individuals. Particularly illuminating was the content he discovered in the archives of Stasi, the former East German intelligence. This was where much of the training of the ANC’s security personnel occurred. He said, “I could find the training manuals that were used to train ANC security officers. One gets quite a good idea of the mentality of a teenager from South Africa sent to East Germany.”

Ellis was joined in discussion by Anthony Butler who challenged Ellis on some of the key issues in his book, in particular the influence and role of the Communist Party. He pointed out that the SACP travelled widely, including to the Soviet Union and to China. “It was able to secure significant resources without which the armed struggle couldn’t be. Who was using who? The Soviets were handing over the money. They were training. What were they getting out of it? The ANC leadership, simply because of the co-option, can’t be viewed as in some way ideologically transformed or indoctrinated,” said Butler.

This multi-layered and complex critique was taken up by Ellis and a vibrant question and answer session followed in a discussion that ended all too soon for those in the audience.

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Liesl Jobson tweeted from the launch using #livebooks:

Stephen Ellis greets Jonathan Ball: For many yrs I wasn’t sure Jonathan Ball was a real person. Jonathan Ball: Me too. twitter.com/LieslJobson/st…

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis is Brit living in Netherlands: The ANC was in exile 1960-90 and was led from outside SA. Period of the armed struggle. #livebooks

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis: SA was a big story on TV every night. Knew ANC leaders based in London, met in Lusaka & Dar es Salaam. Interviews began. #livebooks

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis: In this book I tried putting tog 25 yrs interest & enquiry re ANC & SA context of the time. Been able to see ANC archives. #livebooks

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis: Many know how armed struggle came about, role of Mandela, the standard version of Rivonia “I am prepared to die” speech. #livebooks

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis: Only part of the story. Many trying to get armed. Opposition had no foreign backing. After Sharpeville atmosphere changed. #livebooks

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis: Meeting on 3/11/60 with Chariman Mao is picture on cover with Yusuf Dadoo and Velaphile who worked with the Bank of China. #livebooks

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis: In 1960 coup happened inside ANC when Luthuli lost power. New info about how the armed struggle began. Book goes to 1990. #livebooks

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012

Ellis: Time of Cold War. SACP dominated ANC because idology of vanguard party. Show which way to march. Key to Soviet and Chinese support.

— Liesl Jobson (@LieslJobson) November 13, 2012