The Vula Connection

The Vula Connection is one of apartheid's untold stories, and at its centre is an unusual hero, Tim Jenkin.

Quiet, and bookish, he turns against his own government and the privileged lifestyle it guarantees him, signing up with the black liberation movement that is banned in apartheid South Africa. Jenkin is caught and dispatched to a high security prison.

But against all odds, his patience and meticulous attention to detail get him and two prisoners through 10 locked doors...to freedom. This, however, is much more than an escape story.

It's about a man who plays a pivotal role in taking on the Apartheid regime in the most unexpected way. After his audacious break-out, Jenkin disappears into the backrooms of the ANC's exiled military.

Working from a non-descript London flat, he sets about designing a secret communications system which enables a small group of highly skilled operatives to dodge the Republic's spies and penetrate South Africa's borders.

Then under the nose of prison guards, he succeeds in getting messages passed to the imprisoned Nelson Mandela. These secret communications help to set up the former liberation party to claim victory in South Africa's near miraculous political transition.

But as the dream of peace becomes a reality, Operation Vula is bust and the fall-out represents one of the final skirmishes in the fight for power in this troubled land.

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