Maj Gen Abe Notshweleka was a General Officer in the

South African Army The South African Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of South Africa, a part of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), along with the South African Air Force, South African Navy and South African Military Health Servi ...

from the

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

. He was born in 1954 in Kempton Park and grew up in

Tembisa Thembisa, formerly Tembisa, is a large Township (South Africa), township situated to the north of Kempton Park, Gauteng, Kempton Park on the East Rand, Gauteng, South Africa. It was established in 1957 when black people were resettled from Alexandr ...

where he matriculated. He joined the

uMkhonto we Sizwe uMkhonto weSizwe (; abbreviated MK; ) was the paramilitary wing of the African National Congress (ANC), founded by Nelson Mandela in the wake of the Sharpeville massacre. Its mission was to fight against the South African government to brin ...

's underground structures. He completed a Teaching diploma from a College of Education in

Bophuthatswana Bophuthatswana (, ), officially the Republic of Bophuthatswana (; ), and colloquially referred to as the Bop and by outsiders as Jigsawland (In reference to its enclave-ridden borders) was a Bantustan (also known as "Homeland", an area set asid ...

and taught in schools around

Mafikeng Mahikeng ( Tswana for "Place of Rocks"), formerly known as Mafikeng and alternatively known as Mafeking (, ), is the capital city of the North West province of South Africa. Close to South Africa's border with Botswana, Mafikeng is northeast ...

. He went into exile through

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

and later in

Malanje Malanje is the capital city of Malanje Province in Angola, with a population of 455,000 (2014 census), and a municipality, with a population of 506,847 (2014 census). Projected to be the thirteenth fastest growing city on the African continent be ...

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

where he completed military training. He later served as a MK Camp Commander of Malanje. He stayed in

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

and in

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

where he was a

Military Attaché A military attaché or defence attaché (DA),Defence Attachés
''Geneva C ...

Military career

He specialized in

while in

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

and integrated into the

South African National Defence Force The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) comprises the armed forces of South Africa. The Chief of the SANDF is appointed by the President of South Africa from one of the armed services. They are in turn accountable to the Minister of ...

with the rank of a lieutenant colonel on 27 April 1994. He completed the bridging training at the School of Artillery in Klipdrift. He served as a

staff officer A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large milita ...

4 Artillery Regiment 4 Artillery Regiment is based at Potchefstroom, responsible for the training of soldiers allotted to Field and Medium Artillery. History Origins Under the UDF On 28 May 1945, authority was granted for the formation of 4 Field Artillery as ...

and the Directorate of Artillery in the office of the Chief of the Army from 1995 to 1998. Lt. Col. Notshweleka completed the Senior Command and Staff Duties Course in 1999 and Executive National Security Program in 2001. He was appointed the first Chief of Staff of the newly established Artillery Type Formation from 1999 to 2001. He was promoted to the rank of brigadier general on 1 October 2001 and was General Officer Commanding Artillery Formation from 2001 to 2010. He was appointed at the CD Defence Acquisition at the Defence Secretariat from 2010 until he retired with pension in July 2014. He served as a Special Advisor to Minister of Police (Minister

Bheki Cele Bhekokwakhe "Bheki" Hamilton Cele (born 22 April 1952) was the South African Minister of Police from February 2018 to 17 June 2024. He was National Commissioner of the South African Police Service for two years, until misconduct allegations led ...

) in his civilian life. He died at 1 Military Hospital,

Thaba Tshwane Thaba Tshwane is a military base (or military area) in Pretoria, South Africa. Units and facilities The oldest building in the complex is the South African Garrison Institute, what is now known as the Army College. Lord Kitchener laid the corn ...

in 2021.

Honours and awards

Medals

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Identification badges

Notes

References

1954 births 2021 deaths South African Army generals People from Kempton Park, Gauteng UMkhonto we Sizwe personnel {{SouthAfrica-mil-bio-stub