Jimmy Kruger
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James Thomas Kruger (20 December 1917 – 9 May 1987) was a South African
lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
and
politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
of Welsh descent who was part of the conservative National Party government which championed
apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
. He rose to the position of Minister of Justice and the Police in the cabinet of
Prime Minister A prime minister 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. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
John Vorster Balthazar Johannes "B. J." Vorster (; 13 December 1915 – 10 September 1983), better known as John Vorster, was a South African politician who served as the prime minister of South Africa from 1966 to 1978 and the fourth state president of So ...
from 1974 to 1979. He was also President of 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 ...
from 1979 until 1980, when it was abolished.


Background

Kruger was born in
Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...
,
Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( ; ) was an independent Boer-ruled sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Em ...
, South Africa of Welsh parents and was adopted by
Afrikaner Afrikaners () are a Southern African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers who first arrived at the Cape of Good Hope in 1652.Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: Brain to Casting''. Encyclopæd ...
parents. He obtained his matric from a high school in Ventersdorp and then became a miner. He trained as a surveyor at a gold mine in Brakpan before taking an exam as a mining surveyor. Later he would work as surveyor engineer in Barberton.


Education

Kruger studied part-time for an Afrikaans teaching degree from the
University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA) is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, UNISA has over 400,000 student ...
(UNISA) and later attended the
University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), commonly known as Wits University or Wits, is a multi-campus Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg, South Africa. The universit ...
where he obtained a law degree in 1954. He began practising as a lawyer in 1955.


Political career

In 1962 he became a member of the Transvaal Provincial Council. As National Party candidate, he became a member of the
House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible g ...
in the South African parliament from 1966. In 1972, Kruger was made a deputy cabinet minister in the police, health and welfare portfolio. In 1974 he was upgraded to a full minister for the police, prisons and justice portfolio. In June 1979, the ceremonial post of
President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the Speaker (politics), speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's Order of succession, succes ...
but retired in 1980 when the Senate was abolished.


Steve Biko

He was responsible for the banning of Black Consciousness Movement leader Steve Biko; when Biko died in police custody, the police claimed that Biko had died during a
hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...
. This account was challenged by the white South African journalist Donald Woods, a personal friend of Biko. Kruger's response to Biko's death was: ''"Dit laat my koud."'' ("It leaves me cold."). Kruger later began to recant his earlier statements, while claiming that Biko had authored pamphlets calling for "blood and body in the streets." Woods came under increasing scrutiny for his articles, and finally, following the publication of an article calling on Kruger to resign, he was banned under direct orders from Kruger. Not long afterwards, Woods and his family fled the country for a life of exile in
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. In response to international pressure, the South African government ordered an inquest to investigate the cause of Biko's death; the presiding magistrate concluded that Biko had died of brain damage caused by head injury; however, no one was held responsible for, or prosecuted for, Biko's death.''South African Dispatches'', p. 190 Even so, it was the end of Kruger's career. Having decided that his performance had severely compromised the country's credibility abroad, the government ordered him to resign, and he lost not only his cabinet post, but his membership in the
ruling party The ruling party or governing party in a democratic parliamentary or presidential system is the political party or coalition holding a majority of elected positions in a parliament, in the case of parliamentary systems, or holding the executive ...
, as well. In 1982, Kruger joined the Conservative Party of Andries Treurnicht in protest against the racial reforms of the Botha Government. Kruger spent the rest of his life in political obscurity.


Marriage

Kruger was married to Susan Kruger after whom the
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 ...
ferry the ''Susan Kruger'' was named in 1977.


Death

Kruger died at his home in Irene after recently having heart surgery. He was survived by his wife, Susanna and two sons, Eugene and Eitel.


Cultural references

In the film '' Cry Freedom'' (1987), which was based on Woods's role in the anti-apartheid struggle, Kruger was portrayed by English actor John Thaw. In the film '' Goodbye Bafana'' (2007), Kruger was portrayed by South African actor Norman Anstey.


See also

*
South Africa under apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...


Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kruger, Jimmy 1917 births 1987 deaths Afrikaner people Apartheid government Law enforcement in South Africa South African anti-communists Justice ministers of South Africa South African people of Welsh descent National Party (South Africa) politicians Presidents of the Senate of South Africa Steve Biko affair Conservative Party (South Africa) politicians