Author ‘sacrifices her sanity’ for the greater good
From young university student to struggle comrade and political prisoner.
MBOMBELA – This, the political journey of one South African woman, Bridget Hilton-Barber, is recounted in her memoir and ninth book, Student Comrade Prisoner Spy.
She was the guest speaker at Lowvelder’s Pen in my Hand event, held at Bargain Books in I’langa Mall on Thursday evening. It was the first event of 2017, and book enthusiasts can look forward to many more book discussions throughout the year.
Hilton-Barber’s career in the South African media was marked with moments that left a lasting impact. She has worked as a travel correspondent and editor, yet in Student Comrade Prisoner Spy, she takes the reader back to the early eighties, a period in time which would influence the rest of her life.
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In 1982 the 18-year-old Bridget boarded a train to Grahamstown to study journalism at Rhodes University, following in the footsteps of many of her family members. She would soon become politically involved in anti-apartheid organisations, and find herself unexpectedly caught up in the large-scale, well-organised resistance movement in the Eastern Cape.
“I was arrested and spent three months in jail without ever being charged,” she recalled on Thursday.
A heartbreaking truth awaited her following her release and completes the title of her memoir: her friend, Olivia Forsyth, who had seemingly been part of the resistance alongside Hilton-Barber, was actually a spy for the security police.
“I wept and wept while writing this book,” she said. It took her back to dark times, when she had witnessed horrible things.
“I saw a woman burn to death. We were all betrayed by Olivia,” she recalled. As a result, Hilton-Barber said she would never be the same. She remarked with a laugh that she had sacrificed her sanity during her journey, but that the often difficult resistance was worth it.
“Today, students can negotiate for equal rights. They have opportunities we never had,” she said.
The author added that the #Feesmustfall movement, which has seen a number of universities close their campuses in response to violence by protesters against fees, has its flaws; that it could be done in a more organised manner.
Yet, the author is positive about the future. “I have faith in our new generation,” she concluded.
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