Thandi Modise

"We were quite calm about it. We had been forewarned that it was going to be rougher than usual."

"Every time I am thrown into a situation, I just say to myself: ‘I now need to understand the rules of this situation endingena kuso (which I am entering into) and take it from there.’"

"Sometimes South Africa must not be scared to go back. Were we right when we outlawed [corporal] punishment for children at home and at school?"

"I am not judging because the story is still unfolding and you don’t know if there are exaggerations."

"These three contribute to violence against children and women. For me, that is something which, if ever I retire, I would want to give my life to preventing."

"I sometimes laugh when members of Parliament have a party line and you can see the difference between the mouth and the eyes. You see someone is saying something but doesn’t really believe it."

"When you do not retain people, you create a situation where there is too much competition, where it is a case of: ‘I feel I need to impress my party bosses. I must be loud and prove that I can denigrate the other parties better.’"

"More often, if it is men, they will start off by clearing their throat. Then you know that this is a party line and not a personal conviction.”"