Contents
Joe Slovo
Helping negotiate South Africa’s transition from apartheid.
Umkhonto we Sizwe · Sunset proposals
- Born
- 23 May 1926
- Birthplace
- Obeliai, Lithuania
- Died
- 6 January 1995
More people
Joe Slovo
Joe Slovo was a South African communist and anti-apartheid leader. After decades in exile and leadership of the ANC’s armed wing, he helped negotiate a democratic settlement and served as housing minister.
Early life
Migration
Moved from Lithuania to South Africa with his family as a child.
Law and labour
Worked as a clerk and union organiser before studying law at Witwatersrand.
Career
- 1955
Freedom Charter
Participated in the Congress of the People.
- 1963
Exile
Left South Africa and continued anti-apartheid work abroad.
- 1990
Return
Came back as negotiations to end apartheid developed.
- 1994
Government
Became housing minister in Nelson Mandela’s administration.
Public service & ideas
Umkhonto we Sizwe
Helped build the ANC’s armed resistance organisation.
Sunset proposals
Advocated temporary power-sharing arrangements to help secure a negotiated transition.
Housing programme
Worked on the new government’s response to housing shortages.
Beyond work
Family
Married journalist and activist Ruth First; they had three daughters.
Loss in exile
First was killed by a South African security service letter bomb in Mozambique in 1982.
Sources & photo credit
Life, career and references ↗SACP biography ↗Photo: Associated Press. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
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