Ruth Lotti
Nomonde
Chinamano (16 February 1925 in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second larges ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

– 2 January 2005) was a ZANU-PF politicianMercy Pote
Ruth Chinamano
ZBC News, 11 August 2007 and wife of

Josiah Mushore Chinamano Josiah Mushore Chinamano (October 29, 1922 – 1984) fought in the Rhodesian Bush War as a guerrilla of the Zimbabwe African People's Union. He later served as the Minister of Transport.Hanlon, Joseph. ''Beggar Your Neighbours: Apartheid power in S ...

. Born in Cape Town, she studied at the Maria Zell Teacher Training College in

Matatiele Matatiele is a town located in the northern part of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. According to the South African National Census of 2011, its 12,466 residents (1,113.44 per km²) and 4,107 households (366.83 per km²) make Matatiel ...

in what was then as

East Griqualand Griqualand East (Afrikaans: ''Griekwaland-Oos''), officially known as New Griqualand ( Dutch: ''Nieuw Griqualand''), was one of four short-lived Griqua states in Southern Africa from the early 1860s until the late 1870s and was located between ...

. In 1948 she started teaching at Lourdes, a school located at the border between the Cape and Natal. In 1949, while on holiday at

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, S ...

, she met the Zimbabwean nationalist Josiah Chinamano. The two married in 1950 and shortly afterwards they went to Rhodesia, where she taught at Waddilove Institute, near Marandellas, 60 km east of Salisbury. In 1964 she was detained in Gonakudzingwa Restriction Camp, near the

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Mala ...

border, with her husband and spent the next decade in and out of detention.

Paul Tangi Mhova Mkondo Paul Tangi Mhova Mkondo (23 December 1945 – 9 May 2013) was a Zimbabwean nationalist, part of the first group of Gonakudzingwa restriction camp political prisoners, Pioneer Insurance Executive, Business magnate, Academic, philanthropist, cons ...

was also detained there for sometime as a student youth leader. She and her husband were transferred from Gonakudzingwa to Wha wha prison, outside

Gwelo Gweru is a city in central Zimbabwe. Near the geographical centre of the country. It is on the centre of Midlands Province. Originally an area known to the Ndebele as "The Steep Place" because of the Gweru River's high banks, in 1894 it beca ...

, where they remained until 1970, when they were released but confined to an 8 km radius restriction before being arrested again, being released again in 1974. She was elected to parliament when Zimbabwe held non-racial elections in 1980. She is buried in the National Heroes' Acre, a burial ground for Zimbabwean heroes and heroines which is located about 5 km from

Harare Harare (; formerly Salisbury ) is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of 940 km2 (371 mi2) and a population of 2.12 million in the 2012 census and an estimated 3.12 million in its ...

and which was designed and built by North Koreans.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chinamano, Ruth 1925 births 2005 deaths Politicians from Cape Town Xhosa people Zimbabwean politicians Prisoners and detainees of Rhodesia