Raymond Mhlaba
Encyclopedia
Raymond Mhlaba was an anti-apartheid activist and leader of the African National Congress
African National Congress
The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...

 (ANC).

Mhlaba spent 25 years of his life in prison. Well known for being sentenced, along with Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...

, in the Rivonia Trial
Rivonia Trial
The Rivonia Trial was a trial that took place in South Africa between 1963 and 1964, in which ten leaders of the African National Congress were tried for 221 acts of sabotage designed to overthrow the apartheid system.-Origins:...

, he was an active member of the ANC and the South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party is a political party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa by the joining together of the International Socialist League and others under the leadership of Willam H...

 (SACP) all his adult life. His kindly manner brought him the nickname "Oom Ray".

Early life

He was born in Mazoka village in the Fort Beaufort
Fort Beaufort
Fort Beaufort is a town in the Amatole District of South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, and has a population of 78,300. The town was established in 1837 and became a municipality in 1883. The town lies at the confluence of the Kat and Brak rivers between the Keiskamma and Great Fish rivers...

 district and was educated at Healdtown
Healdtown Comprehensive School
Healdtown Comprehensive School is a Methodist school located near Fort Beaufort, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. It was established in 1845 and assuming its current name in 1994, having been known for most of its history as simply "Healdtown"....

 secondary school. He started working at a laundry in Port Elizabeth after leaving school. There he was introduced to trade unionism through the Non European Laundry Workers Union. In 1943 he joined the South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party is a political party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa by the joining together of the International Socialist League and others under the leadership of Willam H...

, and in 1944 became a member of the African National Congress
African National Congress
The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...

. He met and married his first wife, Joyce Meke, who was also from the Fort Beaufort area. In their 17 years together, before her death in a car accident in 1960, they had three children.

He was one of the ANC leaders arrested during the transport boycott of 1952 when he led a group of volunteers into the "Europeans Only" entrance of the New Brighton police station in Port Elizabeth.

He was the district secretary of the Communist Party from 1946 until it was banned in 1950. He was chairman of the Port Elizabeth branch of the ANC from 1947 to 1953, and was then elected to the Cape Executive committee.

After the ANC was banned he joined other exiles in obtaining military training in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. Returning to South Africa in 1962, he commanded Umkhonto we Sizwe
Umkhonto we Sizwe
Umkhonto we Sizwe , translated "Spear of the Nation," was the armed wing of the African National Congress which fought against the South African apartheid government. MK launched its first guerrilla attacks against government installations on 16 December 1961...

 until 1963, when he was arrested along with other key members at a farm in Rivonia.

Rivonia Trial

He was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Rivonia Trial
Rivonia Trial
The Rivonia Trial was a trial that took place in South Africa between 1963 and 1964, in which ten leaders of the African National Congress were tried for 221 acts of sabotage designed to overthrow the apartheid system.-Origins:...

, and served
time on Robben Island
Robben Island
Robben Island is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 km west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, Cape Town, South Africa. The name is Dutch for "seal island". Robben Island is roughly oval in shape, 3.3 km long north-south, and 1.9 km wide, with an area of 5.07 km². It is flat and only a...

. In 1982 he was transferred to Pollsmoor Prison
Pollsmoor Prison
Pollsmoor Prison, officially, Pollsmoor Maximum Security Prison is a prison in the Cape Town suburb of Tokai in South Africa. Nelson Mandela was the most famous inmate of the prison...

. By special permission he married his common-law wife Dedika Heliso in 1986, with whom he had three children.

Nelson Mandela was a witness at the ceremony, conducted in the prison
commandant's office. Afterwards Mhlaba was legally permitted to touch his wife for the first time in 22 years.

Release from prison

After his release from prison in October 1989, he was elected to the ANC national executive and the South African Communist Party central committee. He became national chairperson of the SACP in 1995.

In January 1994 he was chosen as the ANC's nominee as Premier of the Eastern Cape, and in May 1994 he was elected to that post. He helped to establish the house of traditional leaders. He then became the High Commissioner to Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...

 and Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...

, until he retired in 2001.

In April 2001 he released a book of his memoirs, narrated by him and
researched and compiled by Thembeka Mafumadi.

He was chairperson of a black economic empowerment consortium involved in the Coega port project, but suffered a stroke on July 19, 2003, recovering quickly.

He is seen as a stalwart member of both the ANC and the SACP. He was recognised with the Isitwalandwe Medal
Isitwalandwe Medal
The Isitwalandwe Medal is the highest award given by the African National Congress . Isitwalandwe means “the one who wears the plumes of the rare bird.” It was customarily only given to the bravest warriors, those distinguished by their leadership and heroism.Past recipients...

 in 1992 for his role in the
liberation struggle, and the Moses Kotane Award in 2002 for his
contribution to the SACP.

Death

In 2004 Mhlaba was diagnosed with advanced liver cancer
Hepatocellular carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common type of liver cancer. Most cases of HCC are secondary to either a viral hepatitide infection or cirrhosis .Compared to other cancers, HCC is quite a rare tumor in the United States...

, and in December doctors discharged him from a private clinic saying there was nothing they could do for him. On February 20, 2005 he died in hospital. Mhlaba is survived by his wife, three sons and five daughters.

External links

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