Samora Machel

This beautifully designed book brings together Kok Nam’s photos as well as tributes to Machel and quotations from his own speeches, reminding us of the power of his oratory and the depth of his commitment to a free, democratic and just Mozambique. As Machel said: “Our goal is not to be the African country which is less corrupt than the others, but to eliminate corruption by the roots.” The 29th September 2018 is the 85th anniversary of the birth of Machel. This book is an appropriate and timely tribute to the man and a reminder of the values he espoused in leading the struggle for true liberation in his own country – values which are just as applicable in South Africa today. As Albie Sachs says in his introductory essay: “The humane revolutionary spirit of Samora, evidenced in this beautifully composed book, speaks to us in Southern Africa with undiminished appeal. And Kok Nam’s pictures, intimate yet non-intrusive, accompany the words in eloquent symbiosis.” “Samora had an extraordinary capacity to communicate: with his tone of voice, with his hands, with his eyes, and even with the movements of his body. Kok Nam captured exceptionally well in photographs one of the moments in which his body, the expression on his face and particularly his eyes show a calm Samora but with a restless spirit, shades of colour shining in his gaze, which speaks volumes of the perspicacity of an always restless mind. This photo is more than an image. It leads us to catch and to understand much of the ‘I’ of Samora.” – Graça Machel About the Author: Kok Nam was a Mozambican photographer and photojournalist of Chinese descent who on his death left behind an extraordinary collection of photographs of Samora Machel, the charismatic first president of Mozambique who was killed in a plane crash on the South African border in 1986 under suspicious circumstances.