9781422279991

Political Imprisonment

As defined in TheOxfordHistory of the Prison , a political prisoner is “someonewho is incarcerated for his or her beliefs.” Because political prisoners’ ideas challenge or pose a threat, either real or perceived, to the state, they are imprisoned or held under house arrest . The experiences of real political prisoners recounted in this book give a sense of the terrible situations these men and women are forced to endure. Now I swing between the deepest resentment and the sincere wish to feel no more hatred. Hatred eats you up. . . . Hatred will never enable me to make up for the lost years. —M alika O ufkir Words to Understand Apartheid A political system in South Africa from 1948 until the early 1990s that separated the different peoples living there based on race, with special privileges given to those of European origin. Asylum Protection given by a government to someone who has left another country to escape being harmed. Coup (short for coup d’état) The sudden overthrow of a government and the imme- diate seizure of political power, usually in a violent manner and often by the military. House arrest State of being kept as a prisoner in one’s home rather than a prison; also called home detention.

Malika Oufkir has experienced things few people could even imagine. For a few years, she lived a fairy tale, and then for two decades, her lifewas a nightmare. She,

After spending years locked away as a political prisoner with her family, Malika Oufkir is finally free.

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Political Prisoners

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