Lieutenant General Ian Rimbault Gleeson (15 August 19347 June 2021)
was a South African Army officer who served as Chief of the Defence Staff.
He graduated from the Military Academy after attending Christian Brothers College in Pretoria and joined the Army in 1954.
He became Officer Commanding
2 South African Infantry Battalion
2 South African Infantry Battalion is a motorised infantry unit of the South African Army.
History
Origin: Walvis Bay and South West Africa
2 SAI was established on 1 January 1962, at Walvis Bay an enclave of South Africa surrounded by So ...
in 1971 and in 1972 OC Walvis Bay military base,
and in July 1976 became
GOC 101 Task Force. He then became ''Chief of Army Staff Operations'' on 15 January 1978
before taking on the recreated post of ''Chief of Defence Force Staff''.
He retired in February 1990.
The post-Apartheid
Truth and Reconciliation Commission
A truth commission, also known as a truth and reconciliation commission or truth and justice commission, is an official body tasked with discovering and revealing past wrongdoing by a government (or, depending on the circumstances, non-state ac ...
found that when Generals
Jannie Geldenhuys and Gleeson were informed that the SADF and Security Branch had assassinated Dr
Fabian Ribeiro
Fabian Defu Ribeiro SCOB (19 June 1933 – 1 December 1986) was a South African doctor and anti-apartheid activist who, along with his wife Florence, was assassinated by South African government forces.
Ribeiro studied at the University of Fort ...
and his wife
Florence
Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025.
Florence ...
on 1 December 1986 they failed to pass this information onto the Attorney-General or the police. The commission concluded that they both "acted in an obstructive way for which they are legally responsible".
Awards and decorations
General Gleeson has been awarded the following:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
References
1934 births
2021 deaths
South African Army generals
{{SouthAfrica-mil-bio-stub