Renfrew Christie

Renfrew Leslie Christie (born 1949) is a South African scholar and member of the Anti-Apartheid Movement whose covert operations for uMkhonto we Sizwe, the paramilitary wing of the African National Congress, provided intelligence that made possible the 1982 bombing of the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station. Christie was arrested, tortured, and sentenced to 10 years in prison under the Terrorism Act, 1967 for giving information on the nuclear programme of South Africa to the ANC.[1] His actions were intended to thwart the Apartheid regime of South Africa and weapons of mass destruction, specifically the government's clandestine nuclear arsenal. His work delayed the development of Apartheid South Africa's nuclear weapon programme by several years.[2]

Renfrew Leslie Christie
Born1949 (age 73–74)
Johannesburg, Transvaal, South Africa
Alma materOxford University (DPhil)
Occupation(s)Senior Professor and Dean of Research (retired)
Organization(s)uMkhonto we Sizwe, African National Congress

Christie was released in 1986 after accepting P.W. Botha's offer of freedom in exchange for his renunciation of political violence.[3]

After the fall of Apartheid, Christie resumed his academic career at the University of the Western Cape. When asked by the BBC in 2018 if he was proud to have spied for the ANC, Christie said, "Absolutely. I was working for Nelson Mandela's military force, the uMkhonto we Sizwe. I'm very proud of that. We won. We got a democracy. We got a bill of rights. We got a constitutional court. It worked."[2]

Bibliography
  • The Electrification of South Africa, 1905-1975. British Library. 1993.
  • Electricity, Industry and Class in South Africa. SUNY Press. 1984. ISBN 978-0-87395-854-7.

References
  1. "Renfrew Leslie Christie". South African History Online. 15 March 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  2. "Spying On South Africa's Nuclear Bomb". BBC World Service. Retrieved 20 February 2018.
  3. Sparks, Allister (3 December 1986). "South Africa Releases Prisoner". Washington Post. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
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