The African National Congress (ANC) among others has extended its condolences to the loved ones of renowned poet and anti-apartheid activist Breyten Breytenbach.
Breyetenbach passed away at 85 on Sunday, 24 November, in Paris, France.
ANC MOURNS PASSING OF BREYTEN BREYTENBACH
Breytenbach was born in the small Western Cape town of Bonnievale in 1939 at a time when Afrikaans was emerging with a distinct identity as a language.
The 85-year-old had not lived in South Africa for decades, leaving in the early 1960s to settle in Paris, where he became a global voice against apartheid.
“Our sadness affords us another opportunity to pay tribute to Breyten Breytenbach for the bravery and perseverance with which he stood up to his persecution and prosecution by the apartheid state.
Fearful of his influence on the minority electorate in South Africa and on world opinion, the apartheid regime imprisoned him for opposing the system and channelling through his diverse art forms and political and fraternal affiliations the militancy, tragedy and resilience of our liberation struggle. May his soul rest in peace,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said.
FRENCH EMBASSY REMEMBERS ANTI-APARTHEID ACTIVIST
The French Embassy in South Africa described Breytenbach as a ferryman of freedom, crossing oceans and dismantling barriers of identity and division.
“He remained committed to exposing the inequalities of an unjust world and urging us to ‘imagine Africa’. The President of the Republic pays tribute to this great champion of human rights and freedom, whose legacy will forever link France and South Africa.”
Former French education minister Jack Lang also took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his sadness following Breytenbach’s death.
Lang said Breyten Breytenbach will remain a light in everyone’s imaginations and an example of the fight in favor of all freedoms.
“I am very sad to learn of the passing of my friend, the poet, painter and magnificent South African writer Breyten Breytenbach. A rebel with a tender heart, he was part of all the struggles for human rights.
“His ardent commitment to those who suffer and his fight against apartheid will have been exemplary and decisive. South Africa, this rainbow nation so dear to Nelson Mandela owes him a lot,” Lang said.
HOW WILL YOU REMEMBER BREYTEN BREYTENBACH?
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