Walter Sisulu
By: Alexis Meservey
Background
- Born on May 18, 1912 in the Transkei region of South Africa
- He is mixed race, but was inducted into the Xhosa community in 1927
- Worked in the gold mines where he met Clements Kadalie, the leader of the Industrial and Commercial Workers' Union (ICU)
- He joined the African National Congress (ANC) in 1940
- It was through the ANC that he met Nelson Mandela, Oliver Tambo, and his future wife, Albertina, whom he married in 1944
- He helped form the ANC Youth League along with Mandela, Albertina, and Tambo in 1944 to help bring more militancy to the ANC
- He took part in the Defiance Campaign
- He was banned by the government after enforcing civil disobedience against apartheid in 1952
- He joined the South African Communist Party (SACP) in 1953
- He was one of the defendants in the Treason Trial that lasted from 1956 to 1961, and although he was acquitted, he was placed on house arrest immediately after
- He joined the MK in 1963 causing him to be found guilty of treason in the Rivonia Trial and sentenced to life imprisonment
- While in prison, he gave lectures about the history of the ANC and the liberation struggle
- He remained in prison until 1989
- After he was released from jail, he was appointed the deputy president of the ANC in 1991
- He retired from politics in 1994
- He died on May 5, 2003 in Johannesburg, South Africa
Accomplishments
- Helped form the ANC's Youth League in 1944 and became secretary of the Youth League
- Elected as the ANC's Secretary-General in 1949
- Helped influence the ANC to adopt the Youth League's Programme of Action
- He and Yusuf Cachalia were joint secretaries of the Congress Alliance
- He helped ally the ANC and SACP
- He helped create the MK and became the political advisor in the MK High Command
- Became the deputy president of the ANC in 1991
Significance to the Anti-Apartheid Movement
- He played a significant role in the 1952 Defiance Campaign
- He was a major part of the ANC, the ANC Youth League, the MK, and the Congress Alliance
- He helped in composing the Freedom Charter
- He helped spread knowledge about the ANC and liberation struggle in general while in prison after the Rivonia Trial
Walter Sisulu and his wife, Albertina Sisulu in 1994.
Gallo Images/Getty Images Europe
Gallo Images/Getty Images Europe
Nelson Mandela's tribute to Walter Sisulu
The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group,Web. 15 Nov. 2015.
Works Cited
- "Walter Sisulu." World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO, 2015. Web. 12 Nov. 2015.
- "Walter Ulyate Sisulu." Sahistory.org. South Africa History Online, Web. 15 Nov. 2015.
- Brennan, Carol. "Sisulu, Walter." Encyclopedia.com. HighBeam Research, 01 Jan. 2005. Web. 15 Nov. 2015.