Indres Elatchininathan Naidoo (26 August 1936 – 8 January 2016) was a South African anti-apartheid activist. An early member of the people's liberation army,

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 ...

, Naidoo served 10 years in prison on

Robben Island Robben Island () is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, north of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the Dutch language, Dutch word for seals (''robben''), hence the Dutch/Afrika ...

for sabotage between 1963 and 1973. After his release from prison, Naidoo played a leading role in the revival of the struggle in the 1970s until he was obliged to go into exile in 1977. He served the

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a political party in South Africa. It originated as a liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid and has governed the country since 1994, when the 1994 South African general election, fir ...

(ANC) 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 the

German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. The ANC was unbanned in 1990, and Naidoo returned to South Africa the following year. When the ANC won the 1994 general election, Naidoo was appointed to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and served in Parliament until 1999. In 2014, Naidoo was awarded the Order of Mendi for Bravery in Silver. Indres Naidoo was the son of Roy Naidoo and Manonmoney “Ama” Naidoo, grandson of Thambi Naidoo, and brother of Shanthie Naidoo and Prema Naidoo.

References

External links

Interview with Indres Naidoo by Tor Sellström within the project Nordic Documentation on the Liberation Struggle in Southern Africa
– dated 7 December 1995. South African activists Order of Mendi for Bravery 1936 births 2016 deaths Naidoo family Members of the Senate of South Africa South African anti-apartheid activists {{AntiApartheid-activist-stub