Liza Smit chatted to Polity SA about her new book I am Liza Smit.

On 22 November 1977, 40 years ago, Robert Smit and his wife Jeanne were brutally murdered in their Springs home. They were shot and stabbed several times. A high-ranking member of the National Party, Robert Smit was involved in probable sanctions-busting activities through a front company, Santam International.

Told by Liza Smit, daughter of Robert and Jean, who was 13 years old at the time of the murders, I am Liza Smit is a book of two stories; the story of the lifelong impact the murders had on the lives of those left behind, and on Liza’s own life.

It also tries to unravel the mystery of the murders.

Smit undertook private investigations into her parents’ deaths, and says she believes the murders were politically motivated, and executed through the National Party. ‘There’s no doubt,’ she says.

But that’s not why she wrote the book.

‘The book was actually to leave a legacy for my children,’ Smit says. ‘They needed to know who their grandparents were, and what their heritage was. They didn’t know how I grew up, who my family was, because we were cut off from family at the time of the murder. We were taken to the Free State and I lost contact with basically the whole family.

‘I travelled a very long journey, from the time the murders happened. I felt it was necessary for my children to know why I made certain decisions in my life.

‘It was for healing as well,’ she adds. ‘The book brought me healing.’

Watch the video:

Categories Non-fiction South Africa

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