Neil Aggett
Encyclopedia
Neil Aggett was a white South African trade union leader and labour activist who died whilst in detention after being arrested by the South African Security Police.
, Kenya
, and his family moved to South Africa in 1964, where he attended Kingswood College (South Africa)
in Grahamstown
from 1964 to 1970, and later the University of Cape Town
, where he completed a medical degree in 1976.
Aggett worked as a physician in Black hospitals (under apartheid hospitals were segregated) in Umtata
, Tembisa
and later at Baragwanath
hospital in Soweto
, where he became a popular and active trade union
member, learning to speak Zulu
. He was appointed organiser of the Transvaal Food and Canning Workers’ Union, and helped organise a successful strike against Fatti’s and Moni’s in Islando, which later spread further afield.
Harassed by the security forces, he was entrusted with organising a mass action campaign in Langa
near Cape Town
. He was detained by the security police shortly afterwards, on November 27, 1981. His death on February 5, 1982, after 70 days of detention without trial, marked the 51st death in detention. He was the first white person to die in detention since 1963.
According to the South African security police, Aggett committed suicide
while held at the John Vorster Square police station, by hanging himself with a scarf that a friend had knitted for him. An inquest on 29 June recorded an open verdict. No prosecution was ever brought for his death. The final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission stated that 'troubling inquests', such as the one into Aggett's death, caused the Apartheid regime to find alternative ways of disposing of its opponents, including 'disappearing' people. (vol 6, section 4, chapter 1, p. 517).
Some five years after his death, at the 1987 conference of the Five Freedoms Forum, fellow detainee, Frank Chikane
recalled how he had seen Aggett in jail returning from one of his interrogations, being half carried, half dragged by warders; Chikane saw this as a sign of how badly injured Aggett was already at the time.
About 15,000 people attended his funeral on 11 February 1982, and his union called for a stayaway on the day, to which about 7000 Volkswagen
workers in Uitenhage
responded.
Johnny Clegg includes a tribute to Aggett in one of his songs, Asimbonanga (Mandela) on the Third World Child
album (1987).
Life and Death
Aggett was born in NanyukiNanyuki
Nanyuki is a market town in central-east Rift Valley region of Kenya lying northwest of Mount Kenya along the A2 road and at the terminus of the branch railway from Nairobi. It is situated just north of the Equator . It was founded in 1907 by British settlers, some of whose descendants still live...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, and his family moved to South Africa in 1964, where he attended Kingswood College (South Africa)
Kingswood College (South Africa)
Kingswood College is a private, co-educational, boarding and day school in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It was founded in 1894 and derives its name and ideals from Kingswood School in Bath, England. They also use the same distinctive Wyvern crest and abide by the same Methodist...
in Grahamstown
Grahamstown
Grahamstown is a city in the Eastern Cape Province of the Republic of South Africa and is the seat of the Makana municipality. The population of greater Grahamstown, as of 2003, was 124,758. The population of the surrounding areas, including the actual city was 41,799 of which 77.4% were black,...
from 1964 to 1970, and later the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
, where he completed a medical degree in 1976.
Aggett worked as a physician in Black hospitals (under apartheid hospitals were segregated) in Umtata
Mthatha
Mthatha is the main town of the King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality in Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The town has an airport, previously known by the name K. D. Matanzima Airport after former leader Kaiser Matanzima....
, Tembisa
Tembisa
Tembisa is a large township situated to the north of Kempton Park on the East Rand, Gauteng, South Africa. It was established in 1957 when Africans were resettled from Alexandra and other areas in Edenvale, Kempton Park, Midrand and Germiston.-Etymology:...
and later at Baragwanath
Baragwanath
Baragwanath is a Cornish language surname originating in west Cornwall in the UK. As a result of emigration members of the Baragwanath family can now be found in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand...
hospital in Soweto
Soweto
Soweto is a lower-class-populated urban area of the city of Johannesburg in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for South Western Townships...
, where he became a popular and active trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
member, learning to speak Zulu
Zulu language
Zulu is the language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority of whom live in South Africa. Zulu is the most widely spoken home language in South Africa as well as being understood by over 50% of the population...
. He was appointed organiser of the Transvaal Food and Canning Workers’ Union, and helped organise a successful strike against Fatti’s and Moni’s in Islando, which later spread further afield.
Harassed by the security forces, he was entrusted with organising a mass action campaign in Langa
Langa, Cape Town
Langa is a suburb found in Cape Town, South Africa. It was established in 1927 interms of the 1923 Urban Areas Act. Similar to Nyanga, Langa is one of the many areas in South Africa that were designated for Black Africans before the apartheid era. It is the oldest of such suburbs in Cape Town and...
near Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
. He was detained by the security police shortly afterwards, on November 27, 1981. His death on February 5, 1982, after 70 days of detention without trial, marked the 51st death in detention. He was the first white person to die in detention since 1963.
According to the South African security police, Aggett committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
while held at the John Vorster Square police station, by hanging himself with a scarf that a friend had knitted for him. An inquest on 29 June recorded an open verdict. No prosecution was ever brought for his death. The final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission stated that 'troubling inquests', such as the one into Aggett's death, caused the Apartheid regime to find alternative ways of disposing of its opponents, including 'disappearing' people. (vol 6, section 4, chapter 1, p. 517).
Some five years after his death, at the 1987 conference of the Five Freedoms Forum, fellow detainee, Frank Chikane
Frank Chikane
Frank Chikane is a South African civil servant, writer and cleric. He is a member of the African National Congress.-Biography:...
recalled how he had seen Aggett in jail returning from one of his interrogations, being half carried, half dragged by warders; Chikane saw this as a sign of how badly injured Aggett was already at the time.
About 15,000 people attended his funeral on 11 February 1982, and his union called for a stayaway on the day, to which about 7000 Volkswagen
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
workers in Uitenhage
Uitenhage
Uitenhage is a South African town with 275,185 inhabitants in the Eastern Cape Province. It is well known for the Volkswagen factory located there, which is the biggest car factory on the African continent. The town's name is pronounced by English speakers and in Afrikaans...
responded.
Johnny Clegg includes a tribute to Aggett in one of his songs, Asimbonanga (Mandela) on the Third World Child
Third World Child
Third World Child is studio album by South African artist Johnny Clegg and his band Savuka, released in 1987 and produced by Hilton Rosenthal....
album (1987).
External links
- Short bio (SA History website)
- Short bio (on a Juluka / Johnny Clegg website)
- 1982 trade union newsletter report on his life and death Article in Inqaba ya Basebenzi, May 1982
- Kingswood College, Aggett's old School, honours his life (newspaper article)
- Political magazine article on his life and death (includes pictures taken at his funeral)
- Trade Union newsletter report on strikes following his death and funeral FOSATU Worker News, March 1982
- Details of the Neil Aggett papers held at the library of the University of Cape Town
- http://www.beverleynaidoo.com/burn.html Neil Aggett's boyood in Kenya is an imagined point of reference for the novel Burn My Heart (Puffin, 2007) by his second cousin, Beverley Naidoo