Luwellyn Tyrone Landers (28 December 1947 – November 2023) was a South African politician who was the Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation between May 2014 and May 2019. He represented 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 the

National Assembly of South Africa The National Assembly is the directly elected house of the Parliament of South Africa, located in Cape Town, Western Cape. It consists of four hundred members who are elected every five years using a party-list proportional representation sy ...

from May 1994 to May 2019. Born in

Natal Province The Province of Natal (), commonly called Natal, was a province of South Africa from May 1910 until May 1994. Its capital was Pietermaritzburg. During this period rural areas inhabited by the black African population of Natal were organised int ...

, Landers represented the Labour Party in the

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 ...

-era

Tricameral Parliament The Tricameral Parliament, officially the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa, was the legislature of South Africa between 1984 and 1994, established by the South African Constitution of 1983, which gave a limited political voice to ...

. He also served as a deputy minister in the government of President

P. W. Botha Pieter Willem Botha, ( , ; 12 January 1916 – 31 October 2006) was a South African politician who served as the last Prime Minister of South Africa from 1978 to 1984 and as the first executive State President of South Africa from 1984 until ...

. In September 1993, he defected to the ANC, and he was elected to an ANC seat in the post-apartheid Parliament in 1994. Before he joined the national executive in 2014, Landers was the second chairperson of the Joint Committee on Ethics and Members' Interests between 2002 and 2010 and the fourth chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development between 2010 and 2014.

Early life and career

Born on 28 December 1947, Landers was born and raised on his grandfather's farm in the former

(now

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...

). He attended 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 ...

. In 1984 Landers joined the Labour Party. He represented the party in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

, the

Coloured Coloureds () are multiracial people in South Africa, Namibia and, to a smaller extent, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Their ancestry descends from the interracial mixing that occurred between Europeans, Africans and Asians. Interracial mixing in South ...

house of the

-era

, and he also served as a deputy minister in the cabinet of President

of the

National Party National Party or Nationalist Party may refer to: Active parties * National Party of Australia, commonly known as ''The Nationals'' * Bangladesh: ** Bangladesh Nationalist Party ** Jatiya Party (Ershad) a.k.a. ''National Party (Ershad)'' * Californ ...

. He left the Labour Party in September 1993, becoming one of several party leaders to defect to the

(ANC) ahead of the 1994 general election.

Ordinary Member of the National Assembly: 1994–2014

In the democratic elections of April 1994, Landers was elected to represent the ANC in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

, the lower house of the new

South African Parliament The Parliament of the Republic of South Africa is South Africa's legislature. It is located in Cape Town; the country's legislative capital. Under the present Constitution of South Africa, the bicameral Parliament comprises a National Asse ...

. He remained in his seat for the next 25 years, gaining re-election to five consecutive terms. During the First Parliament he was a founding member of the

Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw- ...

and the Portfolio Committee on Justice.

Ethics committee

In 2002, Landers replaced Sister Bernard Ncube as the chairman of the Joint Committee on Ethics and Members' Interests. He led the committee during its inquiries into the conduct of Terror Lekota and

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Winnie Nomzamo Madikizela-Mandela (born Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela; 26 September 1936 – 2 April 2018), also known as Winnie Mandela, was a South African politician and anti-apartheid activist, second wife of Nelson Mandela. During ...

. In late 2003

Richard Calland Richard J. T. Calland (born 10 July, 1964) is a British-South African writer and political analyst. Until 2023 Calland was Associate Professor of Public Law at the University of Cape Town. He subsequently was appointed Adjunct Associate Professor ...

noted critically that under Landers the committee's "new default position" was to meet in

closed session An executive session is a term for any block within an otherwise open meeting (often of a board of directors or other deliberative assembly) in which minutes are taken separately or not at all, outsiders are not present, and the contents of the dis ...

; he suggested that Landers's approach might have been negatively influenced by his time in the secretive intelligence committee. He continued to serve in the chair during the Third Parliament, nominated to continue by the ANC after the 2004 general election and formally re-elected as chairman at a meeting in June 2004. During this time he was also a member of the ANC's internal National Disciplinary Committee, and he was a member of the panel that expelled chief whip

Mbulelo Goniwe Mbulelo Terence Goniwe (born 25 October 1958) is a South African politician, businessman and former anti-apartheid activist who represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the National Assembly from 1994 to 2006. He was Chief Whip of the ...

from the party in December 2006. After the 2009 general election, Landers was elected to his third term as chairman of the parliamentary ethics committee. In terms of new parliamentary rules, he served alongside a new co-chairman from the upper house of Parliament, the

National Council of Provinces The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) is the upper house of the Parliament of South Africa under the post-apartheid constitution of South Africa, constitution which came into full effect in 1997. It replaced the former Senate of South Africa# ...

; Buoang Mashile was elected to that role at the committee's first meeting in August 2009.

Justice committee

In November 2010, the ANC announced a major reshuffle of the parliamentary caucus, in which Landers was nominated to succeed Ngoako Ramatlhodi as chairman of the justice committee, by then renamed the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development. He had remained an ordinary member of that committee since its establishment. Landers led the justice committee for the rest of the Fourth Parliament. During that time, he was also a prominent member of the

ad hoc committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

established to process the Protection of State Information Bill, 2010, the controversial piece of legislation best known as the Secrecy Bill. Along with ad hoc committee chairman

Cecil Burgess Cecil Burgess (1888–1956) was a Canadian architect. He was born in Walkden, Lancashire, England on 8 July 1888. He was educated Walkden, Lancashire, England. He articled to Henry Kirkby, an architect in Manchester, England. Cecil Burgess arrived ...

, Landers was viewed as a primary advocate of the bill, tasked by the ANC with presenting the party's arguments for the bill in committee. After the Secrecy Bill was passed, Landers was one of seven ANC representatives nominated to serve on the ad hoc committee that would consider the

Public Protector The Public Protector in South Africa is one of six independent state institutions set up by the country's Constitution to support and defend democracy. According to Section 181 of the Constitution: * These institutions are independent, and subj ...

's report on

Nkandlagate The private residence of former South African President Jacob Zuma is situated about south of the rural town of Nkandla in KwaZulu-Natal and is commonly referred to as the Nkandla homestead. During Zuma's presidency, the homestead was the sub ...

. He was also a member of the ad hoc committee on the

judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

conduct code, and he was attached to the ANC's constituency office in Pinetown South, KwaZulu-Natal.

Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation: 2014–2019

On 25 May 2014, announcing his second-term cabinet, President

Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan names Nxamalala and Msholozi. Zuma was a for ...

named Landers as Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation. He was one of two deputy ministers in the portfolio, the other being

Nomaindia Mfeketo Nomaindiya Mfeketo is a South African politician who served as South African Ambassador to the United States from 2020 to 2023, Minister of Human Settlements from 2018 to 2019, Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation,

, and both deputised Minister

Maite Nkoana-Mashabane Maite Emily Nkoana-Mashabane (born 30 September 1963), formerly known as Maite Mohale, is a South African politician who served as the Minister of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities. She was Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform ...

. In a midterm presidential election in February 2018,

Cyril Ramaphosa Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician serving as the 5th and current President of South Africa since 2018. A former Anti-Apartheid Movement, anti-apartheid activist and trade union leade ...

replaced Zuma as president, and in his new cabinet he fired both Minister Nkoana-Mashabane and Deputy Minister Mfeketo. However, Ramaphosa retained Landers as deputy minister, now serving alongside Reginah Mhaule and under

Lindiwe Sisulu Lindiwe Nonceba Sisulu (born 10 May 1954) is a South African politician. She represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the National Assembly of South Africa between April 1994 and March 2023. During that time, from 2001 to 2023, she se ...

. Indeed, Landers represented South Africa at the

United Nations Human Rights Council The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a United Nations Regional Gro ...

later in February 2018. In the next general election in May 2019, Landers ceded his seat in the National Assembly.

Death

On 25 November 2023, the

Department of International Relations and Cooperation The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) is the foreign ministry of the South African government. It is responsible for South Africa's relationships with foreign countries and international organizations, and runs South ...

announced that Landers had died. A spokesman said that the circumstances of his death were not clear."Former deputy minister Luwellyn Landers dies"
''Sunday Times''. 25 November 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.

References

1947 births 2023 deaths African National Congress politicians Coloureds Labour Party (South Africa, 1969) politicians Members of the House of Representatives of South Africa Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 2004–2009 Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 2009–2014 Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 2014–2019 {{Authority control Politicians from KwaZulu-Natal Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 1994–1999 Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 1999–2004