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9h ago

KZN High Court Rules Albert Luthuli Was Killed in 1967 Assault, Overturning Accident Finding

Relying on new inquest evidence, the court implicated apartheid security police with railway staff, directing a probe into a missing eyewitness.

Chief Albert John Luthuli photographed before he boards a plane to Oslo, Norway, to be presented with the Nobel Peace Prize, 8 December 1961. (Photo: Keystone / Getty Images)
Chief Albert Luthuli in Oslo, Norway on 15 December 1961. Picture: AFP
Albert Luthuli, pictured here with his wife, led the African National Congress from 1952 until his death
Luthuli 1960 became the first African to win the Nobel Peace Prize

Overview

  • Judge Nompumelelo Radebe ruled that Luthuli died from a fractured skull, cerebral haemorrhage and brain contusion consistent with an assault.
  • The court found the death attributable to cumulative acts and omissions by apartheid security branch members working with South African Railways employees.
  • The judgment set aside the 1967 Stanger inquest after evidence showed Magistrate C. I. Boswell drafted a letter on August 4, 1967 that appeared to pre-empt the outcome.
  • Individuals named include train driver Stephanus Albertus Lategan, fireman Daniel Greyling, conductor Pieter van Wyk and detective sergeant Charles Barend Petrus Lewis, with findings of perjury, defeating the ends of justice and being accessories after the fact to murder.
  • The Director of Public Prosecutions was instructed to investigate the kidnapping and disappearance of alleged eyewitness Mbhemu Myandu, as Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi publicly welcomed the ruling.