This is a self-authored obituary written by Petros Sipho Sibusiso Mkhize in isiZulu while he was held at Pretoria Central Prison awaiting execution. He headed the document "Isikhumbuzo" (Memorial) and dedicated it "To Getruth Ndlovu." On it he recorded, in his own hand, the key dates of his persecution: his arrest on 14 September 1966, his sentencing on 2 December 1966, and the date appointed for his execution, 1 September 1967.
The page is decorated with hand-drawn flowers in blue and pink, traditional floral motifs that reflect both his cultural heritage and his determination to be remembered on his own terms. The act of writing and decorating one's own memorial while still alive is profoundly haunting. It speaks to Mkhize's awareness of his fate and to his refusal to allow the apartheid state to have the final word on his life and memory.
In creating this document, Mkhize asserted his humanity and ensured that his story would be told by him, not merely recorded in the administrative registers of the prison system. Kept safe by his family through decades of silence and uncertainty, the obituary survives as testimony to his dignity and his resistance.
