Anti apartheid icon Ahmed Kathrada dead at 87 after being jailed with Nelson Mandela
Legend was feted as a humble liberation hero who shunned the power and glory he deserved
SOUTH Africa’s anti-apartheid icon Ahmed Kathrada, who was jailed alongside Nelson Mandela has died after a short illness.
Legendary freedom fighter was often described as Mandela’s “trusted lieutenant”, an “unsung hero” and “humble icon”.
Unlike many struggle veterans, Kathrada, who was imprisoned on Robben Island, never held public political office after the fall of apartheid and Mandela’s election as president in 1994.
He choose instead to serve as one of Mandela’s closest advisers during his time as the country’s first black leader.
When Mandela left office in 1999, after serving a single four-year term, Kathrada also stepped away from politics – immersing himself in activism through his Ahmed Kathrada Foundation.
Released from prison in 1989, the softly-spoken Kathrada commanded huge respect within the African National Congress (ANC) party, belonging to the golden generation of freedom fighters untainted by later corruption scandals.
He was often described as Mandela’s “trusted lieutenant”, an “unsung hero” and “humble icon”.
To those close to him, he was known as “Kathy” or “Uncle Kathy”.
In his book “Long Walk to Freedom”, Mandela recalled meeting a young and impassioned Kathrada during the early days of the struggle, and then their later time on Robben Island.
“Kathy was a slender fellow unused to hard physical labour,” Mandela said, referring to the back-breaking daily work of crushing rock at the prison quarry.
Mandela recounted how Kathrada was mocked by prison warders when he could not move a wheelbarrow laden with rocks, while the guards prevented Mandela from helping his friend.
In the cells, “Kathy” was a teacher for fellow prisoners and a strategic thinker who later formed part of the ANC delegation in the negotiations that finally ended apartheid.
Born on August 21, 1929 in Schweizer-Reneke, a small rural town in what was then known as Western Transvaal, Kathrada was a second generation South African of Indian descent.
In his youth, he joined apartheid resistance movements, including the South African Indian Congress, which followed the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi’s passive resistance.
“Even as a young man, he stood out as a leader,” said retired Constitutional Court judge Albie Sachs.
Kathrada’s arrest with other anti-apartheid activists in a 1963 police raid at Liliesleaf Farm, a secret safe house outside Johannesburg, was a turning point in his life.
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