Inside: Poems from prison and an interview

Abstract

Jeremy Cronin, then a 27-year-old lecturer in the philosophy and politics department of the University of Cape Town, was arrested in July 1976 and sentenced the following September to seven years' imprisonment (Index 1/1977). He was charged under the Terrorism Act and the Internal Security Act for having carried out African National Congress (ANC) underground work for several years. In sentencing him the judge said: ‘So far as you are concerned, Cronin, I get the impression from the political statement you made from the dock yesterday that you are quite unrepentant. I do not suppose that the prison sentence I am going to give you is going to reform you.’ Cronin was released a few months early in May 1983, bringing with him a large number of poems written in prison: some had been jotted down and escaped the prison authorities, others were memorised and written and worked on after his release. A collection of these, entitled Inside, was published in February 1984 by Ravan Press in Johannesburg (distributed in Britain by Third World Publishers). On the publication of Inside Stephen Gray, Professor of Literature at the University of Witwatersrand, asked Jeremy Cronin about conditions for writing poetry in prison in South Africa, about opportunities for his poetry reaching an audience, and what he sees as the main challenge for white poets in South Africa. We print his interview below, together with a selection of poems from Inside.

Counterterrorism and Counterinsurgency in Somalia: Assessing the Campaign Against Al Shabaab

“…This is what made U.S. targeting in Somalia so effective: It was embedded in a broader strategy that involved building partner capacity and direct action. 38 U.S. strikes appeared to weaken al Shabaab in several ways. They disrupted al Shabaab strategy and operations by taking off the battlefield key leaders (such as Ahmed Abdi Godane) and operatives (such as Amniyat leaders like Adan Garaar, who were involved in planning operations).…”

“…37 One of the main proponents of the Ramadan offensive, Godane, came under withering criticism from al Shabaab commanders such as Yaqubi, Shongole, and Robow for shifting away from hit-and-run guerrilla attacks and to more-conventional operations. 38 After the offensive, al Shabaab's Shura council fractured. Anger within the organization was directed at Godane, along with subcommanders, such as Robow, for withdrawing from combat too quickly.…”

“…9-12. 38 Hansen, 2013, pp. 101-104. start of the historic East African drought in July 2011, al Shabaab was on the retreat in Mogadishu and on tenuous ground in many areas of the south.…”