SOUTH AFRICA: NELSON MANDELA PRISON GUARD WRITES BOOK

(28 Oct 1995) English/Nat A South African prison warder who guarded President Nelson Mandela in jail has written a book about his experiences. Coming hot on the heels of Mandela's own best selling autobiography, James Gregory chronicles a tale of two men who started as enemies and became close friends. Gregory spent nine years as a censor at the former Robben island Maximum Security Prison - from 1964 to 1973 - where Mandela was originally held. He then worked exclusively with Mandela and his colleagues when they were transferred to Pollosmoor Prison in 1982. From the time Mandela fell ill with tuberculosis in 1988 until his release in 1990, Gregory was his personal warder. Mandela's last prison - where Gregory watched over him daily and also took him on sight-seeing trips away from the prison - was a comfortable warder's house on the grounds of Victor Verster prison outside Cape town. According to Gregory's book, there was more fear of the media getting hold of Mandela than of him escaping. The ultimately friendly relationship between the two men did not start off that way. Gregory, indoctrinated by apartheid education, started off with the view that Mandela was the enemy. SOUNDBITE:(English) "So I thought to myself you should have been hung, you were lucky. And then I think he saw me as part of the white racist regime or the illegitimate regime. So we were not very friendly at the first meeting." SUPERCAPTION: James Gregory, former prison warden and author. By the time they parted the two had grown to trust each other and, because both suffered the loss of a son, they comforted each other in hard times. When they finally parted, Mandela left him a caring goodbye note on his "Long road to freedom". SOUNDBITE: (English) It was a very emotional time - I think for both of us. Because walking out of the house he came straight to me, he hugged me and he said to me "Goodbye - but this is not goodbye we will see each other again." SUPERCAPTION: James Gregory, former prison warder and author. They did see each other again. Mandela invited Gregory and his wife Gloria to his inauguration as President in May last year and to the launch of his autobiography in December last year. On that day Gregory told him about his own book and he says President Mandela expressed pleasure. Before its publication, Gregory delivered a copy to the President. Next Saturday Gregory flies to Britain for the British launch of a book which has been translated into eight languages. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...