Donald Barkly Molteno (13 February 1908–1972), known as ''Dilizintaba'' ("He who removes mountains"), was a South African parliamentarian,

constitutional law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in fe ...

yer, champion of

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

and a prominent opponent of

Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

Early life and legal career

He was born on 13 February 1908 in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

, in the then

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with t ...

, into a family with a long tradition of political involvement and public service in the Cape (his grandfather, John Molteno was its first

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

). He attended

Diocesan College The Diocesan College (commonly known as Bishops) is a private, English medium, boarding and day high school for boys situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The school was established on ...

and

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

, where he graduated in 1930 with Honours in Law and was called to the Bar at the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and ...

. After practising law for a time in London, he returned to South Africa in 1932 and was admitted as an advocate to the Bar of the Cape Provincial Division of the Supreme Court of South Africa. He was made a Q.C. in 1952 and practised at the Cape Bar until 1964. He was also President of the Cape Bar Council from 1961 to 1963.rel="nofollow" http://www.lib.uct.ac.za/mss/index.php?html=/mss/newaids/BC579.HTM&msscollid=168
/ref>

Political career

Molteno was involved in anti-Apartheid politics from a young age. In 1937 he was approached by the

ANC The African National Congress (ANC) is a social-democratic political party in South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election install ...

, who asked him to represent them in the House of Assembly. He was elected a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

at the age of 29, representing the

Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...

constituency for 11 years until 1948. During this time he was an exceptionally prominent and active MP in the opposition. He was a member of the Civil Rights League, Cafda and the Cape Joint Council of Europeans and Bantu. He was also the regional representative on the South African Institute of Race Relations in the Western Cape in 1936, and was its president from 1958 to 1960. It was partly due to his fight against the segregationalist policies of

J. B. M. Hertzog General James Barry Munnik Hertzog (3 April 1866 – 21 November 1942), better known as Barry Hertzog or J. B. M. Hertzog, was a South African politician and soldier. He was a Boer general during the Second Boer War who serve ...

that he acquired the Xhosa name ''Dilizintaba'' ("Remover of mountains"). He went on to become the first chairman of the

Liberal Party of South Africa The Liberal Party of South Africa was a South African political party from 1953 to 1968. Founding The party was founded on 9 May 1953 at a meeting of the South African Liberal Association in Cape Town. Essentially it grew out of a belief that ...

's constitutional committee before he joined the

Progressive Party (South Africa) The Progressive Party ( af, Progressiewe Party) was a liberal party in South Africa which, during the era of apartheid, was considered the left wing of the all-white parliament. The party represented the legal opposition to apartheid within S ...

and became chairman of its constitutional policy commission as well. He was also one of the Counsel engaged in the constitutional cases questioning the powers of the Union Parliament of South Africa after the passing of the Statute of Westminster in 1931. Molteno was a supporter and the main legal advisor of the

Black Sash The Black Sash is a South African human rights organisation. It was founded in Johannesburg in 1955 as a non-violent resistance organisation for liberal white women. Origins The Black Sash was founded on 19 May 1955 by six middle-class white ...

movement, from soon after it began in 1955. The movement later wrote of him: ''"He taught us all we had to know about Civil Rights, about the inequities and iniquities of the pass laws and influx control...; and so very much more. His knowledge and experience illuminated all our efforts to inform and educate ourselves and the South African public."'' (The Black Sash, Feb. 1973)

Academic career and later life

Mr Molteno was a member of the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

Council (from 1951 to 1960) as well as a part-time lecturer in Constitutional and Administrative Law at that institution. He lectured full-time at the ''Department of Roman Dutch Law'' from 1964, and in 1967 was appointed Professor of the newly created ''Department of Public Law''. Molteno was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Law in 1970 - a position he held until his death in 1972. He left two children by his first wife Veronica Strömsöe and three by his second wife Mary Fleet Goldsmith. The Dictionary of South African Biography (Vol.5, p. 515) described him as, ''"a man of great humanity, as well as of brilliant intellect."'' He appears as a character in the novel '' Ah, but Your Land is Beautiful'' by his colleague and contemporary Alan Paton.

Early life and legal career

Political career

Academic career and later life

References

Further reading