Robert Sobukwe

Robert Sobukwe
"Africa for Africans"
President of the Pan Africanist Congress
In office 9 April 1959 – 1963
Succeeded by	Potlako Leballo
Personal details
Born	(1924-12-05)5 December 1924 Graaff-Reinet, Cape Province, Union of South Africa
Died	27 February 1978(1978-02-27) (aged 53) Kimberley, Cape Province, South Africa
Cause of death	Lung cancer
Political party	Pan Africanist Congress
Spouse	Veronica Sobukwe ​ ​ (m. 1954⁠–⁠1978)​
Children	Miliswa Sobukwe (daughter) Dinilesizwe Sobukwe (son) Dalindyebo Sobukwe (son) Dedanizizwe Sobukwe (son)
Residence(s)	Kimberley, Cape Province, South Africa
Alma mater	University of Fort Hare University of London
Occupation	Teacher and lawyer

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Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe OMSG (5 December 1924 – 27 February 1978) was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary and founding member of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), serving as the first president of the organization.

Sobukwe was regarded as a strong proponent of an Africanist future for South Africa and opposed political collaboration with anyone other than Africans, defining "African" as anyone who lives in and pays allegiance to Africa and who is prepared to subject themselves to African majority rule.^[1] In March 1960, Sobukwe organized and launched a non-violent protest campaign against pass laws, for which he was sentenced to three years in prison on grounds of incitement. In 1963, the enactment of the "Sobukwe Clause," allowed an indefinite renewal of his prison sentence, and Sobukwe was subsequently relocated to Robben Island for solitary confinement. At the end of his sixth year at Robben Island, he was released and placed under house arrest until his death in 1978.^[2]