Steve Tshwete
| Steve Vukhile Tshwete | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Safety and Security | |
|
In office 17 June 1999 – 26 April 2002 |
|
| Preceded by | Sydney Mufamadi |
| Succeeded by | Charles Nqakula |
| Minister of Sport and Recreation | |
|
In office 1994–1999 |
|
| Preceded by | New post |
| Succeeded by | Ngconde Balfour |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Steve Vukhile Tshwete 12 November 1938 Springs, Gauteng |
| Died | 26 April 2002 (aged 63) Pretoria, Gauteng |
| Nationality | South African |
| Spouse(s) | Pamela MaMzangwa |
| Children | Lindela, Mayihlome and Yonda |
| Alma mater | University of South Africa |
Steve Vukhile Tshwete (born 12 November 1938 in Springs, Gauteng – died 26 April 2002 Pretoria, Gauteng) was a South African politician and activist with the African National Congress. Involved in the Umkhonto we Sizwe, Tshwete was imprisoned by the apartheid authorities on Robben Island from February 1964 to 1978. Tshwete resumed activities with the ANC and become a regional coordinator for the new United Democratic Front. He later lived in exile in Zambia with the ANC. After the first free elections in South Africa in 1994, he became the new government's first Sports Minister and later was Minister of Safety and Security.
Steve Tshwete was born in Springs, East Rand, on 12 November 1938 to Xhosa parents. He was the eldest of four siblings. While still a baby his parents moved to Peelton (Nkonkqweni), a black township near King William’s Town, Eastern Cape. He was taught to read by his mother before starting primary school. His political interests were awakened reading the Xhosa newspaper Imvo Zabantsundu in his youth. He attended Forbes Grant Secondary School in King William's Town and was introduced to the ANC through its publications given out the principal, Mr. H. Mjamba, and at Welsh High in East London he joined the ANC's African Students' Association. When he left school he continued his work with the ANC.
As a member of Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) Border regional command, he was arrested in June 1963 and sentenced in February 1964 to fifteen years in jail for belonging to a banned organization. He spent his prison time on Robben Island and completed a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in English and Philosophy from University of South Africa (UNISA). On Robben Island, with his interest in rugby, he organised the prisoners into rugby teams and created a league. He was released in March 1978 and returned to his homeland and became a teacher. By 1983, he became politically active again and joined the United Democratic Front (UDF) becoming the president of the Eastern Cape region. He was arrested that year by the Ciskein police and held for four months and then constantly harassed until he left South Africa for the ANC in exile. He was first in Maseru, Lesotho, and by 1985 he was in Lusaka, Zambia, resuming his military training with MK.
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