Comrade and Commander

This is the first book about a significant South African figure, Joe Modise, who worked in the shadows for much of his life. His journey took him from an impoverished childhood to being chief of a guerrilla army and then Minister of Defence in a liberated country. Kasrils and Hove tell the story of Modise, the gifted revolutionary and military man. They correct mischievous misinformation from his detractors. Modise, a bus driver from Sophiatown in the volatile 1950s, was a young firebrand and brilliant organiser – frequently by Mandela, Sisulu and Oliver Tambo’s side. He was among the youngest accused in the 1956–61 Treason Trial. He was a founding member of Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) in 1961, having pressed for the turn to armed confrontation since there was no possibility for non-violent change. After Mandela and Sisulu’s imprisonment, he became MK’s commander. He served until 1994 as one of the longest-serving guerrilla leaders in history. He was appointed Minister of Defence after the