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"contents": "<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On 25 September, Alison Botha, 55, </span><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-10-14-the-woman-who-refused-to-be-a-victim-alison-botha-fights-for-her-life-a-second-time/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">suffered an aneurysm</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> after the onset of a severe headache. She has since been fighting for her life in a public hospital in Cape Town after having undergone two brain surgeries.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Initially, without medical aid, Alison was rushed to the public George Hospital where she remained for three days before being transferred to a Cape Town hospital for surgery to halt the haemorrhage.</span>\r\n\r\nhttps://youtu.be/uQ2Ozd8z2UM\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Alison became an international embodiment of resilience and has been the recipient globally of many accolades and awards for her strength in refusing to be a victim after she was abducted at knifepoint outside her flat in downtown Gqebera in 1994.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Frans du Toit and Theuns Kruger, the two men who were sentenced to life imprisonment after leaving Alision for dead at Schoenmakerskop, a remote beach outside the city, were released on parole in 2023.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 1997, Alison published her best-selling book, I Have Life – Alison’s Journey, which has sold more than 90,000 copies and has been translated into multiple languages.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2016, Alison’s journey was turned into an award-winning documentary by Uga Carlini titled simply, Alison.</span>\r\n\r\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIvFTrJGWCY\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n<b>Read more: </b><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-10-16-a-long-road-ahead-as-alison-botha-undergoes-brain-surgery/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A long road ahead as Alison Botha undergoes brain surgery</span></a>\r\n<h4><b>Disembowelment </b></h4>\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The extensive damage caused by her disembowelment by Du Toit and Kruger has resulted in a catheter leading from her brain, which is usually placed in the stomach, to be placed instead in her pleural cavity which contains the lungs.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Doctors have said this places Alison at higher risk of infection and pneumonia but for now, the pressure on her brain has been relieved with a resultant improvement in Alison’s speech and cognition.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Communicating with her mother, Claire Collier, who lives in George, Alison conveyed the message this weekend that “you are all part of my life. It is so vital and obvious that not just once, not just twice, but many times we have all been touched by each other. So thank you for reaching out to me now.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“Whoever you are, I thank you for being part of my community.”</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Alison’s recovery is expected to be long-term and she will need occupational and speech therapy.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After her truly miraculous survival and determination not to allow the horror to define how she lived her life, the mother-of-two became a sought-after speaker both locally and internationally.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She was one of the first women in South Africa to identify herself publicly after the rape. Beforehand, the stigma of rape forced many women into silence.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Chris Jansen, the judge who originally sentenced Du Toit (who received three life sentences and Kruger who received one life sentence plus 25 years) said both men should be removed from society “for the rest of their lives”.</span>\r\n<h4><b>Parole anxiety</b></h4>\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the two men were freed in July 2023, Alison received a phone call to inform her about Du Toit’s impending release. She learned of Kruger’s in the media.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For 30 years she had actively fought every one of their attempts at freedom. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She was not consulted despite having been registered with the Department of Correctional Services and thus could not offer objections.</span>\r\n\r\n<b>Read more: </b><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-07-05-freedom-for-alisons-attackers-reignites-lifer-parole-debate/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Freedom for Alison’s attackers reignites ‘lifer’ parole debate</span></a>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their release had caused considerable anxiety for Alison who had dreaded the day the two men who mutilated her would be set free. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A formal application for review of the minister’s decision has subsequently been launched in the Gauteng Local Division. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Meanwhile, a trust account has been established to cover the considerable medical costs she is bound to face.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The account has been established by well-wishers and will be managed by Alison’s legal team and other professionals who have stepped forward. </span><b>DM</b>\r\n<h4><b>Donations to the trust can be made to:</b></h4>\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nedbank Trust Account No. 1302230492\r\n</span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Alison Trust\r\n</span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For international donations, include SWIFT code NEDSZAJJ\r\n</span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Payee Address: 157 Cape Rd, Newton Park, Gqeberha, 6001.\r\n</span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Description: Donation\r\n</span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Purpose: Gifts (BOP Code 401)</span>",
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