THEPOLITICALTRANSITION
cause of his secret discussions with the government, which took place
without consultation with his fellow prisoners or with the exiled leader-
ship in Lusaka.V Moreover, his prestige (as well as his peace of mind) suf-
fered because of the errant behavior of his wife, Winnie. He was deeply
loyal to her because the government had grossly ill-treated her during his
long imprisonment, but she had become an arrogant and violent woman.
In June T991, after a four-month, much-publicized trial, a judge called her
an "unblushing liar," found her guilty of kidnapping and assault, and sen-
tenced her to six years in jail.33 (In June 1993, the Supreme Court con-
firmed the kidnapping charge, removed the assault charge, and reduced
the punishment to a two-year suspended sentence and a fine.)
In July 1991, the ANC held its first conference in South Africa in thirty
years. Ever since it had.been banned in 1961, a tight clique of about thirty-
five people had laid down policy for the ANC. In a highly contentious at-
mosphere, the 2,244 delegates, who had been elected by ANC branches
inside and outside South Africa, met to transform a once secret, illegal
movement into a mass political party with a broader and more democratic