Yunus Carrim’s book reveals untold history of the ANC’s MK Special Operations Unit

FORMER ANC Member of Parliament, Deputy Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and Minister of Communications, Yunus Carrim, has shared the history of the ANC’s uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Special Operations Unit in his book titled Attacking the Heart of Apartheid: The ANC’s MK Special Operations Unit.

- THOBEKA NGEMA

Carrim, who is from Pietermaritzburg, was also a senior lecturer in sociology and a freelance journalist.

He was inspired to write the book because, in the 35 years since the unbanning of political movements in the country, “no one had written about the ANC’s MK Special Operations Unit, beyond a few articles”.

He said many of the unit's operatives have died, and others have aged and it was important to interview those who were still around and record the role of the important MK unit.

“But one shouldn't make too much of the writer. I didn't make that history. They did. They need to speak for themselves and need to be interviewed by the media, where possible,’ Carrim said.

The book is based on interviews with 48 individuals, conducted over 10 years.

The MK unit was established in 1979 to conduct high-profile, high-impact operations against strategic economic and military targets, thereby bolstering the mass struggles.