John Daniel interviewed by Sean Fields October 12, 2004 Durban, South Africa.
"The Swazi peole made a huge contribution; the government was busy collaborating."
Daniel describes the contributions made to the liberation movement by both the people of Swaziland and expatriates living there, often at considerable risk - hiding African National Congress members, storing weapons, and taking money inside South Africa. This was difficult in such a small country where the government was collaborating with the South African government.
John Daniel was born in 1944; his student days at the University of Natal beginning in 1962 changed his political perspective from the conservative worldview of his parents. He was involved with National Union of South African Students (NUSAS) and became its president. Under threat of being banned, he went into exile in 1968, earned a PhD in the United States and then taught in Swaziland for 12 years, where he provided various kinds of support to the liberation movement. Daniel returned to South Africa in 1991 and worked for the Research Department of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, where he focused on South Africa’s gross violations of human rights in neighboring countries.
