General Constand Viljoen joined the South African army as a soldier in the 1960s, fighting against Communists and Black activists. As a member of the ruling white Afrikaan minority, Viljoen cheered when Nelson Mandela, a prominent member of the African National Congress (ANC), was arrested for sabotage and sentenced to life in prison. Viljoen raised through the ranks, becoming Commander in Chief of South Adfrica's armed forces. At the same time, hoever, the political regime known as apartheid, which represented White rule and which had been instaured following the Second World War, had begun to crumble under international pressure and internal activism.
As the world changed in 1990, with the Soviet Union's collapse, the reunification of Germany, and the rollback of the Iron Curtain, South Africa was not immune. The apartheid regime released Mandela after 27 years in captivity. Mandela took the reins of the ANC and negotiated with the South African president to put an end of the apartheid regime. Free elections were called in 1994.
With the electoral campaign heating up and the most likely election of a Black government for the first time, General Viljoen was approached by radical members of nationalist militias, who offered their services to protect White power. Ready to lead a coup against a new government, Viljoen meets Mandela for the first time, and the two of them talk of their lives. Viljoen realizes that a coup attempt will lead to bloodshed and generational destruction, and though the White minority possess most of the weapons, they do not have the numbers needed to successfully win and occupy the country. Mandela, for this part, knows that a coup will lead to vengeance requests from his people, which would destroy their society.
The two of them begin to negotiate a transition in secret, where no coup will take place, and where the rights of the White minority will be protected by the new government. Against all odds, in 1994 a peaceful transition of power takes place, and the predicted violence does not occur. General Viljoen refuses to lead the conspirators, and Mandela becomes the first Black president of South Africa. Bitter enemies became friends and gave their society a chance to thrive.
The illustrations of this graphic novel are crisp and the coloring reflect the tones of South Africa. Fans of history will learn how a coup almost took place against Mandela's ANC government, and how the Nobel Peace winner was able to diffuse the situation by turning an enemy into a friend.
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