Stephen Bernard Lee (born c. 1951) is a South African former political prisoner best known for his 1979 escape from Pretoria Local Prison (part of the
Pretoria Central Prison
Pretoria Central Prison, renamed Kgosi Mampuru II Management Area by former President Jacob Zuma on 13 April 2013 and sometimes referred to as Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Services is a large prison in central Pretoria, within the City of Tshwane ...
complex) with friend and fellow activist
Tim Jenkin
Timothy Peter Jenkin (born 1948) is a South African writer, former anti-apartheid activist and political prisoner. He is best known for his 1979 escape from Pretoria Local Prison (part of the Pretoria Central Prison complex), along with Steph ...
and a third inmate,
Alex Moumbaris
Alexandre Moumbaris is a political activist and former political prisoner. He was born in Egypt to Greeks, Greek parents, grew up in Australia, lived and worked in the United Kingdom, UK, was imprisoned in South Africa and now lives in France. H ...
.
Biography
Early life and activism
Lee was born in South Africa. After developing an interest in
Marxism
Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
and involving himself in
left-leaning
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
student politics at the
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...
and subsequently switching courses from
business science
Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit."
Having a business name does not separat ...
to
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...
in 1971, he met Jenkin in a sociology class. They soon became friends and both of them sought out the literature banned by the
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
government, devouring,
photocopy
A photocopier (also called copier or copy machine, and formerly Xerox machine, the generic trademark) is a machine that makes copies of documents and other visual images onto paper or plastic film quickly and cheaply. Most modern photocopiers u ...
ing it and swapping it with other students. They both found their sociology course disappointing, as the material reinforced the status quo of the apartheid system.
As they started realising the full extent of the unfair system of apartheid, they were fired with a desire to work towards change. Coming to the conclusion they could not effect any real change within the constitutional framework, which banned all effective and truly democratic opposition, they decided the ideals of the
African National Congress
The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...
(ANC) were worth fighting for. The only way they could work for this banned organisation was to move to the UK and make contact with the organisation there, so both set off in February 1974 by ship via
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
, spending a few weeks in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
en route.
Upon arrival in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
in April 1974, they applied to join the ANC. While the ANC were checking their credentials, Lee went and worked as a carpenter in the Netherlands and taught
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
. At the end of 1974, the ANC informed him they had been approved and, after receiving some months of training with them, could return to South Africa to do something for the movement. During this time Lee worked as a
bus conductor
Bus conductors (also referred to as conductors, or clippies) were a common feature of many bus services across Europe until the late 1970s and early 1980s. The main reason two-person crews were needed was that most towns and cities used doubl ...
and joined the
Transport and General Workers' Union
The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate its ...
(TGWU).
[
After their return to ]Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
in July 1975, Lee and Jenkin bought a typewriter, duplicator and stationery to print and post pamphlets and leased first a garage and then a tiny apartment. In March 1976 Lee decided to go to Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
to look for work, and the ANC coincidentally sent them both on their first mission, to disperse leaflets urging support for the ANC and unity in the liberation struggle via a leaflet bomb in Johannesburg, close to the anniversary of the Sharpeville Massacre
The Sharpeville massacre occurred on 21 March 1960 at the police station in the township of Sharpeville in the then Transvaal Province of the then Union of South Africa (today part of Gauteng). After demonstrating against pass laws, a crowd of ...
. After achieving this mission, Lee worked for the University of the Witwatersrand
The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), is a multi-campus South African Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg. It is more commonly known as Wits University or Wits ( o ...
, while Jenkin ran the "cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
Cell may also refer to:
Locations
* Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...
" on his own in Cape Town. Not long after the Soweto uprising, Lee planted a number of leaflet bombs around Johannesburg.
In December 1976, Lee went to Cape Town and both he and Jenkin planted leaflet bombs in the city and suburbs. In Jenkin's words, "The actual message on the leaflets, important as it was, was not as important as the fact the ANC had done it. It is because of the propaganda effect...".
In June 1977 Lee distributed several caches of leaflets at a right-wing
Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, authorit ...
sociology conference in Johannesburg. In September, he and Jenkin hung a 10-metre-long banner with the words "ANC LIVES" from a high building in the centre of Cape Town, along with a timed device which distributed hundreds of leaflets over the crowds below. Lee moved back to Cape Town in December after enrolling in a master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. in sociology, and the two continued their undercover work, but unbeknownst to them they were by this time under surveillance by police.
Arrest
At 3am on 2 March 1978, they were both arrested, after being seen moving their printing equipment into their own dwelling.
They were separated, interrogated and put into cells, without being informed of the charges or their rights. This was legal under Section 6 of the Terrorism Act, which allowed detention without trial for up to 60 days, and was extendable. Lee made an escape attempt and nearly succeeded. After a spell in the notorious John Vorster Square
The Johannesburg Central Police Station is a South African Police Service police station in downtown Johannesburg, South Africa. From its unveiling in 1968 until September 1997, it was called John Vorster Square, after Prime Minister B.J. Vorste ...
in Johannesburg, they were returned to Cape Town and after four weeks, allowed to see family, and held at Pollsmoor Prison
Pollsmoor Prison, officially known as Pollsmoor Maximum Security Prison, is located in the Cape Town suburb of Tokai in South Africa. Pollsmoor is a maximum security penal facility that continues to hold some of South Africa's most dangerous c ...
as they awaited trial. After Lee's father brought him a copy of the book ''Papillon'', the book inspired them to seriously consider the prospect of escape and they concentrated on rigorous observations of the world around them.
Trial
Along with Jenkin, Lee was tried in the Cape Town Supreme Court from 6 to 15 June 1978, charged with helping to produce and distribute pamphlets for the ANC and South African Communist Party
The South African Communist Party (SACP) is a communist party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), tactically dissolved itself in 1950 in the face of being declared illegal by the governing Na ...
(SACP), and/or participating in ANC, SACP and Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) (all banned organisations in apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
South Africa) activities. They received poor legal advice and were not allowed to make their own pleas in answer to the charges. Lee's family had insisted on using a different defence lawyer, and he and his witnesses – parents, a Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
chaplain and a family friend – used the line Jenkin was the ringleader and Lee had been corrupted. Lee was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment and Jenkin to twelve.
Prison
They were first taken to Pretoria Central Prison
Pretoria Central Prison, renamed Kgosi Mampuru II Management Area by former President Jacob Zuma on 13 April 2013 and sometimes referred to as Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Services is a large prison in central Pretoria, within the City of Tshwane ...
for assessment, where they were assigned to Pretoria Local Prison (aka Pretoria Prison) to serve out their sentences. This was a separate prison, one of three along with Pretoria Central proper and "Maximum" or "Beverly Hills" which were part of the complex - although all three were often referred to mistakenly as Pretoria Central. Within this prison, they were assigned to the maximum security part reserved for white male political prisoners, making the number up to 11 at that time. From the first day, they were observing their surroundings and weighing up the chances of an escape.
Escape
Lee, Jenkin and Alex Moumbaris
Alexandre Moumbaris is a political activist and former political prisoner. He was born in Egypt to Greeks, Greek parents, grew up in Australia, lived and worked in the United Kingdom, UK, was imprisoned in South Africa and now lives in France. H ...
escaped from Pretoria Prison in 1979,[ after meticulous planning and trial runs. The escape is described in great detail by Jenkin's book, ''Escape from Pretoria'' (1987, 2003).]
Although Jenkin and Moumbaris contributed most towards the preparations for and material necessities of the plan, Lee was firmly behind their thinking and assisted in whatever ways he could. After escaping, Lee separated for some weeks from the others, staying with friends in Johannesburg before meeting up with them again at Luanda
Luanda () is the capital and largest city in Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Angola's administrative centre, its chief seaport ...
airport to fly out of Angola
, national_anthem = " Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capital = Luanda
, religion =
, religion_year = 2020
, religion_ref =
, coordina ...
.[
]
Life after prison
Lee and Jenkin appeared at a press conference in Lusaka
Lusaka (; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was ab ...
, Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...
with Oliver Tambo
Oliver Reginald Kaizana Tambo (27 October 191724 April 1993) was a South African anti-apartheid politician and revolutionary who served as President of the African National Congress (ANC) from 1967 to 1991.
Biography
Higher education
Oliv ...
on 2 January 1980 to tell their stories. After flying to Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
, Lee flew on to London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
on 13 January 1980, having renounced his South African citizenship soon after arrival in Pretoria.
In May 1980 the warden who had been on duty of the night of the escape, Sergeant Vermeulen, was put on trial for "aiding terrorists", or alternatively aiding in the escape of three prisoners. Lee, having first written to a newspaper explaining Vermeulen's innocence, upon request sent a sworn statement to his defence attorney stating Vermeulen's innocence. The combination of this and the many inconsistencies in his forced "confession" led to his eventual acquittal.
Lee and Jenkin went on a speaking tour in Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
in the early 1980s.
In TV and film
In 2013, the story of the prison escape was dramatised in the 7th episode of the 2nd season of '' Breakout'', a television series made by National Geographic TV channel dramatising real-life prison escapes. The video features excerpts from interviews with Jenkin, Lee, Moumbaris and Goldberg filmed in 2012, in between re-enacted scenes of the prison escape.[
In May 2017, it was announced production would start on a film of Jenkin's book, produced by David Barron and starring ]Daniel Radcliffe
Daniel Jacob Radcliffe (born 23 July 1989) is an English actor. He rose to fame at age twelve, when he began portraying Harry Potter in the film series of the same name; and has held various other film and theatre roles. Over his career, Rad ...
as Jenkin and Ian Hart
Ian Davies (born 8 October 1964), better known by his stage name Ian Hart, is an English actor. His most notable roles are Rabbit in the Channel Four drama miniseries ''One Summer'' (1983), Joe O'Reilly in the biopic ''Michael Collins'' (1996) ...
as Goldberg. Filming of ''Escape from Pretoria
''Escape from Pretoria'' is a 2020 Australian prison film co-written and directed by Francis Annan, based on the real-life prison escape by three political prisoners in South Africa in 1979, starring Daniel Radcliffe and Daniel Webber. It is ba ...
'' began in Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
, South Australia, in March 2019, with Daniel Webber joining the cast as Lee.
References
Cited works
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Stephen
Escapees from South African detention
University of Cape Town alumni
White South African anti-apartheid activists
UMkhonto we Sizwe personnel
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people