Hani speaks about her father at ERC fundraiser
Lindiwe and her mother were on holiday in Lesotho when the news came that Chris had been assassinated.
The Edenvale Rotary Club recently had the honor of hosting Lindiwe Hani at their gala dinner and auction event.
The fundraising initiative was held on May 27 at Modderfontein Golf Club.
The funds from the evening will contribute towards the club’s Rotary Foundation grant application to upgrade Little Eden’s laundry.
Professional auctioneer Angela Trumble attended the event to run the auction.
Linda Clarke, secretary of the ERC, said Lindiwe shared her touching story of being Chris Hani’s daughter.
She told the audience she had been very close to her father.
Growing up, Lindiwe spent the first two years of her life in Lesotho, where she lived with her parents and two elder sisters.
This changed, however, when the SADF began conducting raids into Lesotho in search of her father and it forced him to relocate to Lusaka.
Her father stayed in Lusaka for eight years.
After returning to South Africa the Hani family moved to Boksburg.
Lindiwe said she was 10 years old when her father returned and she was delighted her dad could take her to school and attend sports days.
She said they would often spend time together.
Lindiwe and her mother were on holiday in Lesotho when the news came that her father had been assassinated.
More deaths were to follow.
Lindiwe’s uncle Oliver Reginald Tambo passed away within weeks of her father’s death, her sister Khwezi died two years later and shortly after that she discovered she was pregnant with an unplanned pregnancy.
The pregnancy was aborted.
Lindiwe said within a month she was devastated by what she had done.
Soon after that her boyfriend died in an accident.
Following the tragedies Lindiwe turned to alcohol and cocaine.
After several years of addiction she changed her lifestyle and went to rehab at Houghton House.
She said after rehab she was able to grieve her losses.
The writing of her book Being Chris Hani’s Daughter assisted with the process of healing.
“In the book she tells us how she met with Clive and Gaye Derby-Lewis and visited Janusz Walus in prison. She felt that meeting these individuals in person was the final step in her being able to process the tragedy of her father’s death,” said Linda.
President Garth Trumble and the ERC members thanked all those individuals who donated items for the auction and the raffle, and gave goods and services to make the event such a success.
