Rape survivor Alison Botha has spoken her first words since brain surgery after suffering an aneurysm almost a month ago.

On 25 September, Alison Botha, 55, suffered an aneurysm 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

In 2016, Alison's journey was turned into an award-winning documentary by Uga Carlini titled simply, Alison....