Phillip Carswell

Unforgettable leader born with a natural curiosity We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later. Skip to sections navigationSkip to contentSkip to footer • • Log in The Sydney Morning Herald Log in • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ◦ • • • • • Advertisement • National • Obituaries This was published 5 months ago Unforgettable leader born with a natural curiosity April 16, 2024 — 2.23pm Advertisement Listen to this article 8 min PHILLIP JAMES CARSWELL October 20, 1953-March 17, 2024 The death of Phillip James Carswell OAM was noted with profound sorrow by his family, friends, and the gay community to whom he dedicated his life’s work. Phil was an extraordinary person, a powerful advocate, and an unforgettable leader whose legacy will forever be intertwined with the future of Australia’s LGBTIQ+ communities. Phil was born to Russ and Joan Carswell at Mercy Hospital Albury in NSW in October 1953. He was the beloved younger brother of Julian, Timmy, and Ann. As a child, Phil enjoyed summers in regional NSW, riding his bike, swimming, and attending tap dancing classes. He was born with a natural curiosity, always interested in how things worked and taking time to learn from others. From an early age, Phil’s mother instilled in him a strong sense of justice. She was a local activist who fought to establish the local kindergarten and for many other causes throughout Phil’s youth. In 1972, Phil began his studies at the State College of Victoria, Rusden, where he trained to become a teacher. Here, Phil began cementing his reputation as a unionist, serving as a member of the national executive of the Australian Union of Students. While still a student, Phil helped to launch the inaugural National Homosexual Conference at Melbourne University in 1975, which centred on the oppression of gay and lesbian Australians and explored pathways to liberation. His first teaching assignments were in the Western suburbs, including Tottenham Technical School, where he taught science. Although most children towered over him, Phil was never fazed. He had a remarkable knack for winning over his students, a skill he would sharpen throughout his lifetime. As a teacher, Phil became a member of the state executive of the Victorian Technical Teachers’ Union, acting as the union’s editor from 1983 to 1984. Jude Munro AO co-convened the National Homosexual Conference with Phil and recalled one of his projects as a union member. Phillip Carswell: unforgettable leader. Advertisement “He energetically pursued human sexuality education and galvanised a small group to write and publish the seminal booklet, Young, Gay and Proud.” His dedication to achieving equality for all drove him to continue advocating for the gay and lesbian liberation movement. Throughout his lifelong advocacy, Phil contributed to the legalisation of same-sex marriage, the exoneration of those criminalised for their sexuality, and the abolition of conversion therapy. Phil experienced the fruits of his liberation efforts when homosexuality was decriminalised in 1980, describing the freedom of living authentically as “pure joy”. A year later, he would be forced to return to advocating for his community with a greater urgency than ever before. The AIDS epidemic, as we now recognise it, began in 1981. By 1982, Phil was working with the ALSO Foundation, gathering information about gay related immune deficiency (GRID), which would come to be named acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Just a few years into his career as an educator, Phil felt compelled to leave teaching and joined the Department of Health in Victoria to do his part in the fight against AIDS. In 1983, Phil convened the Victorian AIDS Action Committee, bringing together some of the community’s brightest minds with backgrounds in law, medicine, marketing, and activism to form a united front against AIDS. He would later serve as the organisation’s first president when it became the Victorian AIDS Council in 1984. Phil believed people were the organisation’s heartbeat and attributed the Victorian AIDS Council’s ultimate success to the hardworking volunteers who fought tirelessly alongside him. David Menadue OAM was one of the first people diagnosed with HIV in Australia and worked closely with Phil throughout the epidemic. “What really impressed me about Phil was he was always ahead of the story – in the early ’80s he and friend Tom Carter took candles to Melbourne’s City Square to raise consciousness about an epidemic that hardly any of us knew much about. He never gave up that dedication to caring and advocating for those of us who discovered we were HIV-positive,” Menadue said. Phil and Tom’s activism was the basis for Australia’s first AIDS Candlelight Vigil – a tradition that continues to this day. Like in his teaching days, Phil’s indomitable personality allowed him to forge relationships and act as a much-needed bridge between the government and the gay community. In 1984, Phil became a liaison officer for the Health Commission of Victoria and a representative for the gay community on the National Advisory Committee on AIDS. Fellow former VAC president and friend of more than 50 years, Dr Adam Carr, recalls Phil’s ability to bridge these gaps. “His real leadership gift was that he was able to work very closely with people of all different political orientations or social backgrounds and get us working together as a team,” Carr said. Phil participated in Australia’s first National AIDS Conference in 1985. The following year, he travelled to the US and Europe to collect information and produce a report on AIDS education resources. Clarity and education, rather than the vilification of the gay community, were the cornerstones of Phil’s response to the AIDS epidemic. In 1987, Phil became one of the first trustees of the AIDS Trust of Australia and organised the creation of an AIDS memorial quilt to honour those who had died. The quilt is now recognised and protected by the Victorian Heritage Register. After over a decade with the Victorian Department of Health, Phil moved to Brisbane in 1993, where he continued his work for the Queensland Department of Health for the next 20 years. In June 2015, Phil was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for his outstanding service to community health and response to the HIV and AIDS crisis. Phil’s peers reflected on his legacy and long-lasting community impact. “Phil was able to harness everybody’s energies and acknowledge the hurt in the community, the bereavement and sense of loss that we were all suffering at that time and turn it to positive effect. I don’t think anybody has been as good at that as he was,” Carr said. “Phil was a warrior for those of us living with HIV – he saw the epidemic coming before the rest of us and helped set up the community organisations to deal with it. We owe him a great debt for his compassion and conviction,” David Menadue said. Even after undergoing dialysis and an eventual kidney transplant, Phil’s drive for advocacy carried on. He championed for those with chronic kidney disease, campaigning for all patients to receive equitable care and be allowed active involvement in their own care. A truly incredible activist, Phil achieved his dream of creating a community controlled organisation that would outlast him. The Victorian AIDS Council, now known as Thorne Harbour Health, offers invaluable services to the gay community, from the gay community. Phil’s legacy and vision will remain a guiding force for Thorne Harbour’s future, never to be forgotten. Phil is survived by his partner of 40 years, Ian Cherry, whom he married on Stonewall Day in 2013 in New York City. Phil’s memorial service will be held on Monday, April 22, from 3pm at The Edge in Federation Square. To RSVP, send an email to rsvp@thorneharbour.org with your name and any accessibility requirements. Phillip Carswell’s friends and colleagues at Thorne Harbour Health contributed to this tribute. License this article • Obituaries • LGBTQ Most Viewed in National A global conwoman’s wild lies and the victims she’s left behind ‘Unethical cowboys’: RSL NSW president accused of ‘exploiting’ veterans by overcharging for legal advice Goldman Sachs, Mumm scrap events after restaurateur charged with displaying Nazi symbol at rally ‘Most important thing in my life’: O’Keefe’s emotional courtroom confession Accountants in Epping, solicitors in Newtown: The most popular job in each Sydney suburb Opinion The $3 Dutch household item every person needs in the cost-of-living crisis SMH RECOMMENDS Lifestyle King Charles eats half an avocado for lunch every day. That’s nuts Why is it that the people with the most access to the world’s bounty, like Victoria Beckham and Jennifer Aniston, have whittled their diets down to minimalist meals? National Whistleblower sacked over ambulance rollover picture Andrew Bishop went to the aid of a paramedic who tipped his van after an 18-hour shift. The picture he took caused a public backlash for Ambulance Victoria. He’s now been sacked. World ‘More hideous than a seniors’ trip to a hot spring’: Japanese cabinet mocked for edited photo After careful observers noticed subtle changes in official photographs, the government conceded on Monday that “minor editing was made”. Promoted Live Smart Save Money Electricians agree: Solar is only worthwhile if your house has... Health Insurance Comparison Little-Known Hack For Seniors With Private Health Cover RSL Art Union $5 could win you a $3.5M Palm Beach luxury lifestyle, with over $300K of gold included National Mobile phone data placed Rebelo at his mother’s house around the time she died, prosecutors tell court Sport Tennis star Badosa in racism storm after ‘imitating Asian people’ in chopsticks photo National A lesbian friend has asked me to donate sperm, but my new girlfriend’s not happy nuubu.com Discover The Secret Remedy Everyone's Talking About Health Insurance Comparison Why Seniors with private health cover are losing money Lottery Office Could the AU$ 540 Million Jackpot be yours? SMH Impersonating Donald Trump is a losing proposition, but Sebastian Stan nails it National An Airbnb, kidnapping, and two days of torture: How an extortion plan unravelled in Perth’s suburbs National WFH is being replaced by a less welcome acronym. Perth, we must fight back From our partners Advertisement The Sydney Morning Herald • Twitter • Facebook • Instagram • RSS • The Sydney Morning Herald • The Age • Brisbane Times • WAtoday • The Australian Financial Review • Domain • Drive • Tributes • Celebrations • Place your ad • Commercial Real Estate • Contact & support • Advertise with us • Newsletters • Accessibility guide • Sitemap • Photo sales • Purchase front pages • Content licensing • Work with us • Terms of use • Privacy policy • Press Council • Charter of Editorial Independence • Subscription packages • My account • Subscriber FAQs • Delivery status • Today’s Paper • Good Food Guide • Daily Puzzles Copyright © 2024 Subscribe Unforgettable leader born with a natural curiosity We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later. Skip to sections navigationSkip to contentSkip to footer • • Log in The Sydney Morning Herald Log in • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ◦ • • • • • Advertisement • National • Obituaries This was published 5 months ago Unforgettable leader born with a natural curiosity April 16, 2024 — 2.23pm Advertisement Listen to this article 8 min PHILLIP JAMES CARSWELL October 20, 1953-March 17, 2024 The death of Phillip James Carswell OAM was noted with profound sorrow by his family, friends, and the gay community to whom he dedicated his life’s work. Phil was an extraordinary person, a powerful advocate, and an unforgettable leader whose legacy will forever be intertwined with the future of Australia’s LGBTIQ+ communities. Phil was born to Russ and Joan Carswell at Mercy Hospital Albury in NSW in October 1953. He was the beloved younger brother of Julian, Timmy, and Ann. As a child, Phil enjoyed summers in regional NSW, riding his bike, swimming, and attending tap dancing classes. He was born with a natural curiosity, always interested in how things worked and taking time to learn from others. From an early age, Phil’s mother instilled in him a strong sense of justice. She was a local activist who fought to establish the local kindergarten and for many other causes throughout Phil’s youth. In 1972, Phil began his studies at the State College of Victoria, Rusden, where he trained to become a teacher. Here, Phil began cementing his reputation as a unionist, serving as a member of the national executive of the Australian Union of Students. While still a student, Phil helped to launch the inaugural National Homosexual Conference at Melbourne University in 1975, which centred on the oppression of gay and lesbian Australians and explored pathways to liberation. His first teaching assignments were in the Western suburbs, including Tottenham Technical School, where he taught science. Although most children towered over him, Phil was never fazed. He had a remarkable knack for winning over his students, a skill he would sharpen throughout his lifetime. As a teacher, Phil became a member of the state executive of the Victorian Technical Teachers’ Union, acting as the union’s editor from 1983 to 1984. Jude Munro AO co-convened the National Homosexual Conference with Phil and recalled one of his projects as a union member. Phillip Carswell: unforgettable leader. Advertisement “He energetically pursued human sexuality education and galvanised a small group to write and publish the seminal booklet, Young, Gay and Proud.” His dedication to achieving equality for all drove him to continue advocating for the gay and lesbian liberation movement. Throughout his lifelong advocacy, Phil contributed to the legalisation of same-sex marriage, the exoneration of those criminalised for their sexuality, and the abolition of conversion therapy. Phil experienced the fruits of his liberation efforts when homosexuality was decriminalised in 1980, describing the freedom of living authentically as “pure joy”. A year later, he would be forced to return to advocating for his community with a greater urgency than ever before. The AIDS epidemic, as we now recognise it, began in 1981. By 1982, Phil was working with the ALSO Foundation, gathering information about gay related immune deficiency (GRID), which would come to be named acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Just a few years into his career as an educator, Phil felt compelled to leave teaching and joined the Department of Health in Victoria to do his part in the fight against AIDS. In 1983, Phil convened the Victorian AIDS Action Committee, bringing together some of the community’s brightest minds with backgrounds in law, medicine, marketing, and activism to form a united front against AIDS. He would later serve as the organisation’s first president when it became the Victorian AIDS Council in 1984. Phil believed people were the organisation’s heartbeat and attributed the Victorian AIDS Council’s ultimate success to the hardworking volunteers who fought tirelessly alongside him. David Menadue OAM was one of the first people diagnosed with HIV in Australia and worked closely with Phil throughout the epidemic. “What really impressed me about Phil was he was always ahead of the story – in the early ’80s he and friend Tom Carter took candles to Melbourne’s City Square to raise consciousness about an epidemic that hardly any of us knew much about. He never gave up that dedication to caring and advocating for those of us who discovered we were HIV-positive,” Menadue said. Phil and Tom’s activism was the basis for Australia’s first AIDS Candlelight Vigil – a tradition that continues to this day. Like in his teaching days, Phil’s indomitable personality allowed him to forge relationships and act as a much-needed bridge between the government and the gay community. In 1984, Phil became a liaison officer for the Health Commission of Victoria and a representative for the gay community on the National Advisory Committee on AIDS. Fellow former VAC president and friend of more than 50 years, Dr Adam Carr, recalls Phil’s ability to bridge these gaps. “His real leadership gift was that he was able to work very closely with people of all different political orientations or social backgrounds and get us working together as a team,” Carr said. Phil participated in Australia’s first National AIDS Conference in 1985. The following year, he travelled to the US and Europe to collect information and produce a report on AIDS education resources. Clarity and education, rather than the vilification of the gay community, were the cornerstones of Phil’s response to the AIDS epidemic. In 1987, Phil became one of the first trustees of the AIDS Trust of Australia and organised the creation of an AIDS memorial quilt to honour those who had died. The quilt is now recognised and protected by the Victorian Heritage Register. After over a decade with the Victorian Department of Health, Phil moved to Brisbane in 1993, where he continued his work for the Queensland Department of Health for the next 20 years. In June 2015, Phil was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for his outstanding service to community health and response to the HIV and AIDS crisis. Phil’s peers reflected on his legacy and long-lasting community impact. “Phil was able to harness everybody’s energies and acknowledge the hurt in the community, the bereavement and sense of loss that we were all suffering at that time and turn it to positive effect. I don’t think anybody has been as good at that as he was,” Carr said. “Phil was a warrior for those of us living with HIV – he saw the epidemic coming before the rest of us and helped set up the community organisations to deal with it. We owe him a great debt for his compassion and conviction,” David Menadue said. Even after undergoing dialysis and an eventual kidney transplant, Phil’s drive for advocacy carried on. He championed for those with chronic kidney disease, campaigning for all patients to receive equitable care and be allowed active involvement in their own care. A truly incredible activist, Phil achieved his dream of creating a community controlled organisation that would outlast him. The Victorian AIDS Council, now known as Thorne Harbour Health, offers invaluable services to the gay community, from the gay community. Phil’s legacy and vision will remain a guiding force for Thorne Harbour’s future, never to be forgotten. Phil is survived by his partner of 40 years, Ian Cherry, whom he married on Stonewall Day in 2013 in New York City. Phil’s memorial service will be held on Monday, April 22, from 3pm at The Edge in Federation Square. To RSVP, send an email to rsvp@thorneharbour.org with your name and any accessibility requirements. Phillip Carswell’s friends and colleagues at Thorne Harbour Health contributed to this tribute. License this article • Obituaries • LGBTQ Most Viewed in National A global conwoman’s wild lies and the victims she’s left behind ‘Unethical cowboys’: RSL NSW president accused of ‘exploiting’ veterans by overcharging for legal advice Goldman Sachs, Mumm scrap events after restaurateur charged with displaying Nazi symbol at rally ‘Most important thing in my life’: O’Keefe’s emotional courtroom confession Accountants in Epping, solicitors in Newtown: The most popular job in each Sydney suburb Opinion The $3 Dutch household item every person needs in the cost-of-living crisis SMH RECOMMENDS Lifestyle King Charles eats half an avocado for lunch every day. That’s nuts Why is it that the people with the most access to the world’s bounty, like Victoria Beckham and Jennifer Aniston, have whittled their diets down to minimalist meals? National Whistleblower sacked over ambulance rollover picture Andrew Bishop went to the aid of a paramedic who tipped his van after an 18-hour shift. The picture he took caused a public backlash for Ambulance Victoria. He’s now been sacked. World ‘More hideous than a seniors’ trip to a hot spring’: Japanese cabinet mocked for edited photo After careful observers noticed subtle changes in official photographs, the government conceded on Monday that “minor editing was made”. Promoted Live Smart Save Money Electricians agree: Solar is only worthwhile if your house has... Health Insurance Comparison Little-Known Hack For Seniors With Private Health Cover RSL Art Union $5 could win you a $3.5M Palm Beach luxury lifestyle, with over $300K of gold included National Mobile phone data placed Rebelo at his mother’s house around the time she died, prosecutors tell court Sport Tennis star Badosa in racism storm after ‘imitating Asian people’ in chopsticks photo National A lesbian friend has asked me to donate sperm, but my new girlfriend’s not happy nuubu.com Discover The Secret Remedy Everyone's Talking About Health Insurance Comparison Why Seniors with private health cover are losing money Lottery Office Could the AU$ 540 Million Jackpot be yours? SMH Impersonating Donald Trump is a losing proposition, but Sebastian Stan nails it National An Airbnb, kidnapping, and two days of torture: How an extortion plan unravelled in Perth’s suburbs National WFH is being replaced by a less welcome acronym. Perth, we must fight back From our partners Advertisement The Sydney Morning Herald • Twitter • Facebook • Instagram • RSS • The Sydney Morning Herald • The Age • Brisbane Times • WAtoday • The Australian Financial Review • Domain • Drive • Tributes • Celebrations • Place your ad • Commercial Real Estate • Contact & support • Advertise with us • Newsletters • Accessibility guide • Sitemap • Photo sales • Purchase front pages • Content licensing • Work with us • Terms of use • Privacy policy • Press Council • Charter of Editorial Independence • Subscription packages • My account • Subscriber FAQs • Delivery status • Today’s Paper • Good Food Guide • Daily Puzzles Copyright © 2024 Subscribe Unforgettable leader born with a natural curiosity We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later. Skip to sections navigationSkip to contentSkip to footer • • Log in The Sydney Morning Herald Log in • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ◦ • • • • • Advertisement • National • Obituaries This was published 5 months ago Unforgettable leader born with a natural curiosity April 16, 2024 — 2.23pm Advertisement Listen to this article 8 min PHILLIP JAMES CARSWELL October 20, 1953-March 17, 2024 The death of Phillip James Carswell OAM was noted with profound sorrow by his family, friends, and the gay community to whom he dedicated his life’s work. Phil was an extraordinary person, a powerful advocate, and an unforgettable leader whose legacy will forever be intertwined with the future of Australia’s LGBTIQ+ communities. Phil was born to Russ and Joan Carswell at Mercy Hospital Albury in NSW in October 1953. He was the beloved younger brother of Julian, Timmy, and Ann. As a child, Phil enjoyed summers in regional NSW, riding his bike, swimming, and attending tap dancing classes. He was born with a natural curiosity, always interested in how things worked and taking time to learn from others. From an early age, Phil’s mother instilled in him a strong sense of justice. She was a local activist who fought to establish the local kindergarten and for many other causes throughout Phil’s youth. In 1972, Phil began his studies at the State College of Victoria, Rusden, where he trained to become a teacher. Here, Phil began cementing his reputation as a unionist, serving as a member of the national executive of the Australian Union of Students. While still a student, Phil helped to launch the inaugural National Homosexual Conference at Melbourne University in 1975, which centred on the oppression of gay and lesbian Australians and explored pathways to liberation. His first teaching assignments were in the Western suburbs, including Tottenham Technical School, where he taught science. Although most children towered over him, Phil was never fazed. He had a remarkable knack for winning over his students, a skill he would sharpen throughout his lifetime. As a teacher, Phil became a member of the state executive of the Victorian Technical Teachers’ Union, acting as the union’s editor from 1983 to 1984. Jude Munro AO co-convened the National Homosexual Conference with Phil and recalled one of his projects as a union member. Phillip Carswell: unforgettable leader. Advertisement “He energetically pursued human sexuality education and galvanised a small group to write and publish the seminal booklet, Young, Gay and Proud.” His dedication to achieving equality for all drove him to continue advocating for the gay and lesbian liberation movement. Throughout his lifelong advocacy, Phil contributed to the legalisation of same-sex marriage, the exoneration of those criminalised for their sexuality, and the abolition of conversion therapy. Phil experienced the fruits of his liberation efforts when homosexuality was decriminalised in 1980, describing the freedom of living authentically as “pure joy”. A year later, he would be forced to return to advocating for his community with a greater urgency than ever before. The AIDS epidemic, as we now recognise it, began in 1981. By 1982, Phil was working with the ALSO Foundation, gathering information about gay related immune deficiency (GRID), which would come to be named acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Just a few years into his career as an educator, Phil felt compelled to leave teaching and joined the Department of Health in Victoria to do his part in the fight against AIDS. In 1983, Phil convened the Victorian AIDS Action Committee, bringing together some of the community’s brightest minds with backgrounds in law, medicine, marketing, and activism to form a united front against AIDS. He would later serve as the organisation’s first president when it became the Victorian AIDS Council in 1984. Phil believed people were the organisation’s heartbeat and attributed the Victorian AIDS Council’s ultimate success to the hardworking volunteers who fought tirelessly alongside him. David Menadue OAM was one of the first people diagnosed with HIV in Australia and worked closely with Phil throughout the epidemic. “What really impressed me about Phil was he was always ahead of the story – in the early ’80s he and friend Tom Carter took candles to Melbourne’s City Square to raise consciousness about an epidemic that hardly any of us knew much about. He never gave up that dedication to caring and advocating for those of us who discovered we were HIV-positive,” Menadue said. Phil and Tom’s activism was the basis for Australia’s first AIDS Candlelight Vigil – a tradition that continues to this day. Like in his teaching days, Phil’s indomitable personality allowed him to forge relationships and act as a much-needed bridge between the government and the gay community. In 1984, Phil became a liaison officer for the Health Commission of Victoria and a representative for the gay community on the National Advisory Committee on AIDS. Fellow former VAC president and friend of more than 50 years, Dr Adam Carr, recalls Phil’s ability to bridge these gaps. “His real leadership gift was that he was able to work very closely with people of all different political orientations or social backgrounds and get us working together as a team,” Carr said. Phil participated in Australia’s first National AIDS Conference in 1985. The following year, he travelled to the US and Europe to collect information and produce a report on AIDS education resources. Clarity and education, rather than the vilification of the gay community, were the cornerstones of Phil’s response to the AIDS epidemic. In 1987, Phil became one of the first trustees of the AIDS Trust of Australia and organised the creation of an AIDS memorial quilt to honour those who had died. The quilt is now recognised and protected by the Victorian Heritage Register. After over a decade with the Victorian Department of Health, Phil moved to Brisbane in 1993, where he continued his work for the Queensland Department of Health for the next 20 years. In June 2015, Phil was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for his outstanding service to community health and response to the HIV and AIDS crisis. Phil’s peers reflected on his legacy and long-lasting community impact. “Phil was able to harness everybody’s energies and acknowledge the hurt in the community, the bereavement and sense of loss that we were all suffering at that time and turn it to positive effect. I don’t think anybody has been as good at that as he was,” Carr said. “Phil was a warrior for those of us living with HIV – he saw the epidemic coming before the rest of us and helped set up the community organisations to deal with it. We owe him a great debt for his compassion and conviction,” David Menadue said. Even after undergoing dialysis and an eventual kidney transplant, Phil’s drive for advocacy carried on. He championed for those with chronic kidney disease, campaigning for all patients to receive equitable care and be allowed active involvement in their own care. A truly incredible activist, Phil achieved his dream of creating a community controlled organisation that would outlast him. The Victorian AIDS Council, now known as Thorne Harbour Health, offers invaluable services to the gay community, from the gay community. Phil’s legacy and vision will remain a guiding force for Thorne Harbour’s future, never to be forgotten. Phil is survived by his partner of 40 years, Ian Cherry, whom he married on Stonewall Day in 2013 in New York City. Phil’s memorial service will be held on Monday, April 22, from 3pm at The Edge in Federation Square. To RSVP, send an email to rsvp@thorneharbour.org with your name and any accessibility requirements. Phillip Carswell’s friends and colleagues at Thorne Harbour Health contributed to this tribute. License this article • Obituaries • LGBTQ Most Viewed in National A global conwoman’s wild lies and the victims she’s left behind ‘Unethical cowboys’: RSL NSW president accused of ‘exploiting’ veterans by overcharging for legal advice Goldman Sachs, Mumm scrap events after restaurateur charged with displaying Nazi symbol at rally ‘Most important thing in my life’: O’Keefe’s emotional courtroom confession Accountants in Epping, solicitors in Newtown: The most popular job in each Sydney suburb Opinion The $3 Dutch household item every person needs in the cost-of-living crisis SMH RECOMMENDS Lifestyle King Charles eats half an avocado for lunch every day. That’s nuts Why is it that the people with the most access to the world’s bounty, like Victoria Beckham and Jennifer Aniston, have whittled their diets down to minimalist meals? National Whistleblower sacked over ambulance rollover picture Andrew Bishop went to the aid of a paramedic who tipped his van after an 18-hour shift. The picture he took caused a public backlash for Ambulance Victoria. He’s now been sacked. World ‘More hideous than a seniors’ trip to a hot spring’: Japanese cabinet mocked for edited photo After careful observers noticed subtle changes in official photographs, the government conceded on Monday that “minor editing was made”. Promoted Live Smart Save Money Electricians agree: Solar is only worthwhile if your house has... Health Insurance Comparison Little-Known Hack For Seniors With Private Health Cover RSL Art Union $5 could win you a $3.5M Palm Beach luxury lifestyle, with over $300K of gold included National Mobile phone data placed Rebelo at his mother’s house around the time she died, prosecutors tell court Sport Tennis star Badosa in racism storm after ‘imitating Asian people’ in chopsticks photo National A lesbian friend has asked me to donate sperm, but my new girlfriend’s not happy nuubu.com Discover The Secret Remedy Everyone's Talking About Health Insurance Comparison Why Seniors with private health cover are losing money Lottery Office Could the AU$ 540 Million Jackpot be yours? SMH Impersonating Donald Trump is a losing proposition, but Sebastian Stan nails it National An Airbnb, kidnapping, and two days of torture: How an extortion plan unravelled in Perth’s suburbs National WFH is being replaced by a less welcome acronym. Perth, we must fight back From our partners Advertisement The Sydney Morning Herald • Twitter • Facebook • Instagram • RSS • The Sydney Morning Herald • The Age • Brisbane Times • WAtoday • The Australian Financial Review • Domain • Drive • Tributes • Celebrations • Place your ad • Commercial Real Estate • Contact & support • Advertise with us • Newsletters • Accessibility guide • Sitemap • Photo sales • Purchase front pages • Content licensing • Work with us • Terms of use • Privacy policy • Press Council • Charter of Editorial Independence • Subscription packages • My account • Subscriber FAQs • Delivery status • Today’s Paper • Good Food Guide • Daily Puzzles Copyright © 2024 Subscribe

I Don't Want to Talk About it - Biography of Tony Carden by his mother Lesley Saddington

Tony Carden was a gay activist in Sydney and apart from the fact that he died of AIDS, he was also involved with organisations such as ACT UP, an activist group which it could in effect be said to have been imported from the USA where, thanks to Ronald Reagan,the number of deaths fromm HIV/AIDS had become astronomical. I suppose one could say that bin an way we were lucky in Australia when AIDS landed here,beucause to a certain extent we couldlearn from the US disaster and try and see that we did not make all the mistakes made in the USA. One thing we were lucky about was that we had a goverment at that time was composed of severalpeople who were progressive thinkers and were to achieve some progressive moves which helped to save the lives of thousands of people, mostly young men. We were also fortunate that gay liberation was in its early days and there were many youg people who became politically active which helped so many youg people understand actions that needed to be taken in order to work towards changing the political climate. One such person was Tony Carden who was at the forefront of activism in ACT UP and the likes which changed the politics of activism. Tony Carden died of AIDS and his mother Lesley Saddington has written a book about his life which should go a long way for today's young people to learn how to go about changing the politics of conservatism and effecting the changes we all need for a freer society and na less oppressive climate for the gay and lesbian and other people of diverse sexualities to live in a climate of less oppression making a happier set ofcommunities. I came out as a gay man when I was 61 in the early days of HIV/AIDS, and so was able to learn early about safe sex and other difficulties we were burdened with thanks to Reagen and Margaret Thatcher who was busy introducing some of the most conservative palicies in the UK of any white goverments in the Western world. To learn a great deal about life in Australia in the 1980s and 1990s, the book just published by Lesley Saddington is a must read called "I Don'[t Want to Talk About it. It reminded me a great deal of the great horrors of those terrible years.

A THOUSAND MILES FROM CARE

Steve Johnson has written a book about the murder of his brother SCOTT JOHNSON which needs to be read by as many people as possible but most of all the gay and lesbian and other communities with affiliations to those communities where most murders and assaults occur. These took place mostly in NSW in the 1980's and 1990 which has had some of the most corrupt police in these organisations leaving devastated groups of people who have over the years had to deal with communities shattered by the unsolved crimes commited against devastated people who then do not have orgaisations they can turn to for assistance and healing. Once I started reading the story I was not able to put the book down until I had finished it. I came out as a gay man at the age of 61 at the time when we were also having to deal with the arrival of HIV and AIDS in our communitiesn and arround the world,giving homophobes yet another opportunity to do as much harm to all our communities with links t0 gay organisations as possible. I became a carer for people dying of AIDS, in Australia mostly young gay men which gaqve the homophobes even more opportunities for hate of those in the community who identified with any of these groups and affiliated communities.

MAKING GAZA UNLIVEABLE (FROM COUNTERPUNCH 12 JANUARY 2024)f by Joshua Frank

counterpunch logo Articles CP+ Subscribe Donate Books Login Merch Archives Podcasts January 12, 2024 Making Gaza Unliveable by Joshua Frank Photo: intifada.de via Frank M. Rafik on Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA).

On a picturesque beach in central Gaza, a mile north of the now-flattened Al-Shati refugee camp, long black pipes snake through hills of white sand before disappearing underground. An image released by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shows dozens of soldiers laying pipelines and what appear to be mobile pumping stations that are to take water from the Mediterranean Sea and hose it into underground tunnels. The plan, according to various reports, is to flood the vast network of underground shafts and tunnels Hamas has reportedly built and used to carry out its operations.

While Israel is already test-running its flood strategy, it’s not the first time Hamas’s tunnels have been subjected to sabotage by seawater. In 2013, neighboring Egypt began flooding Hamas-controlled tunnels that were allegedly being used to smuggle goods between the country’s Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip. For more than two years, water from the Mediterranean was flushed into the tunnel system, wreaking havoc on Gaza’s environment. Groundwater supplies were quickly polluted with salt brine and, as a result, the dirt became saturated and unstable, causing the ground to collapse and killing numerous people. Once fertile agricultural fields were transformed into salinated pits of mud, and clean drinking water, already in short supply in Gaza, was further degraded.

Israel’s current strategy to drown Hamas’s tunnels will no doubt cause similar, irreparable damage. “It is important to keep in mind,” warns Juliane Schillinger, a researcher at the University of Twente in the Netherlands, “that we are not just talking about water with a high salt content here — seawater along the Mediterranean coast is also polluted with untreated wastewater, which is continuously discharged into the Mediterranean from Gaza’s dysfunctional sewage system.”

This, of course, appears to be part of a broader Israeli objective — not just to dismantle Hamas’s military capabilities but to further degrade and destroy Gaza’s imperiled aquifers (already polluted with sewage that’s leaked from dilapidated pipes). Israeli officials have openly admitted their goal is to ensure that Gaza will be an unlivable place once they end their merciless military campaign.

“We are fighting human animals, and we are acting accordingly,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said shortly after the Hamas attack of October 7th. “We will eliminate everything — they will regret it.”

And Israel is now keeping its promise.

As if its indiscriminate bombing, which has already damaged or destroyed up to 70% of all homes in Gaza, weren’t enough, filling those tunnels with polluted water will ensure that some of the remaining residential buildings will suffer structural problems, too. And if the ground is weak and insecure, Palestinians will have trouble rebuilding.

Flooding tunnels with polluted groundwater “will cause an accumulation of salt and the collapse of the soil, leading to the demolition of thousands of Palestinian homes in the densely populated strip,” says Abdel-Rahman al-Tamimi, director of the Palestinian Hydrologists Group, the largest NGO monitoring pollution in the Palestinian territories. His conclusion couldn’t be more stunning: “The Gaza Strip will become a depopulated area, and it will take about 100 years to get rid of the environmental effects of this war.”

In other words, as al-Tamimi points out, Israel is now “killing the environment.” And in many ways, it all started with the destruction of Palestine’s lush olive groves.

(B)Olives No More

During an average year, Gaza once produced more than 5,000 tons of olive oil from more than 40,000 trees. The fall harvest in October and November was long a celebratory season for thousands of Palestinians. Families and friends sang, shared meals, and gathered in the groves to celebrate under ancient trees, which symbolized “peace, hope, and sustenance.” It was an important tradition, a deep connection both to the land and to a vital economic resource. Last year, olive crops accounted for more than 10% of the Gazan economy, a total of $30 million.

Of course, since October 7th, harvesting has ceased. Israel’s scorched earth tactics have instead ensured the destruction of countless olive groves. Satellite images released in early December affirm that 22% of Gaza’s agricultural land, including countless olive orchards, has been completely destroyed

“We are heartbroken over our crops, which we cannot reach,” explains Ahmed Qudeih, a farmer from Khuza, a town in the Southern Gaza Strip. “We can’t irrigate or observe our land or take care of it. After every devastating war, we pay thousands of shekels to ensure the quality of our crops and to make our soil suitable again for agriculture.”

Israel’s relentless military thrashing of Gaza has taken an unfathomable toll on human life (more than 22,000 dead, including significant numbers of women and children, and thousands more bodies believed to be buried under the rubble and so uncountable). And consider this latest round of horror just a particularly grim continuation of a seven decade-long campaign to eviscerate the Palestinian cultural heritage. Since 1967, Israel has uprooted more than 800,000 native Palestinian olive trees, sometimes to make way for new illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank; in other instances, out of alleged security concerns, or from pure, visceral Zionist rage.

Wild groves of olive trees have been harvested by inhabitants of the region for thousands of years, dating back to the Chalcolithic period in the Levant (4,300-3,300 BCE), and the razing of such groves has had calamitous environmental consequences. “[The] removal of trees is directly linked to irreversible climate change, soil erosion, and a reduction in crops,” according to a 2023 Yale Review of International Studies report. “The perennial, woody bark acts as a carbon sink … [an] olive tree absorbs 11 kg of CO2 per liter of olive oil produced.”

Besides providing a harvestable crop and cultural value, olive groves are vital to Palestine’s ecosystem. Numerous bird species, including the Eurasian Jay, Green Finch, Hooded Crow, Masked Shrike, Palestine Sunbird, and Sardinian Warbler rely on the biodiversity provided by Palestine’s wild trees, six species of which are often found in native olive groves: the Aleppo pine, almond, olive, Palestine buckhorn, piny hawthorne, and fig.

As Simon Awad and Omar Attum wrote in a 2017 issue of the Jordan Journal of Natural History:

“[Olive] groves in Palestine could be considered cultural landscapes or be designated as globally important agricultural systems because of the combination of their biodiversity, cultural, and economic values. The biodiversity value of historic olive groves has been recognized in other parts of the Mediterranean, with some proposing these areas should receive protection because they are habitat used by some rare and threatened species and are important in maintaining regional biodiversity.”

An ancient, native olive tree should be considered a testament to the very existence of Palestinians and their struggle for freedom. With its thick spiraling trunk, the olive tree stands as a cautionary tale to Israel, not because of the fruit it bears, but because of the stories its roots hold of a scarred landscape and a battered people that have been callously and relentlessly besieged for more than 75 years.

White Phosphorus and Bombs, Bombs, and More Bombs

While contaminating aquifers and uprooting olive groves, Israel is now also poisoning Gaza from above. Numerous videos analyzed by Amnesty International and confirmed by the Washington Post display footage of flares and plumes of white phosphorus raining down on densely populated urban areas. First used on World War I battlefields to provide cover for troop movements, white phosphorus is known to be toxic and dangerous to human health. Dropping it on urban environments is now considered illegal under international law, and Gaza is one of the most densely populated places on earth. “Any time that white phosphorus is used in crowded civilian areas, it poses a high risk of excruciating burns and lifelong suffering,” says Lama Fakih, director for the Middle East and North Africa at Human Rights Watch (HRW).

While white phosphorus is highly toxic to humans, significant concentrations of it also have deleterious effects on plants and animals. It can disrupt soil composition, making it too acidic to grow crops. And that’s just one part of the mountain of munitions Israel has fired at Gaza over the past three months. The war (if you can call such an asymmetrical assault a “war”) has been the deadliest and most destructive in recent memory, by some estimates at least as bad as the Allied bombing of Germany during World War II, which annihilated 60 German cities and killed an estimated half-million people.

Like the Allied forces of World War II, Israel is killing indiscriminately. Of the 29,000 air-to-surface munitions fired, 40% have been unguided bombs dropped on crowded residential areas. The U.N. estimates that, as of late December, 70% of all schools in Gaza, many of which served as shelters for Palestinians fleeing Israel’s onslaught, had been severely damaged. Hundreds of mosques and churches have also been struck and 70% of Gaza’s 36 hospitals have been hit and are no longer functioning

.

A War That Exceeds All Predictions

“Gaza is one of the most intense civilian punishment campaigns in history,” claims Robert Pape, a historian at the University of Chicago. “It now sits comfortably in the top quartile of the most devastating bombing campaigns ever.”

It’s still difficult to grasp the toll being inflicted, day by day, week by week, not just on Gaza’s infrastructure and civilian life but on its environment as well. Each building that explodes leaves a lingering cloud of toxic dust and climate-warming vapors. “In conflict-affected areas, the detonation of explosives can release significant amounts of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter,” says Dr. Erum Zahir, a chemistry professor at the University of Karachi.

Dust from the collapsed World Trade Center towers on 9/11 ravaged first responders. A 2020 study found that rescuers were “41 percent more likely to develop leukemia than other individuals.” Some 10,000 New Yorkers suffered short-term health ailments following the attack, and it took a year for air quality in Lower Manhattan to return to pre-9/11 levels.

While it’s impossible to analyze all of the impacts of Israel’s nonstop bombing, it’s safe to assume that the ongoing leveling of Gaza will have far worse effects than 9/11 had on New York City. Nasreen Tamimi, head of the Palestinian Environmental Quality Authority, believes that an environmental assessment of Gaza now would “exceed all predictions.”

Central to the dilemma that faced Palestinians in Gaza, even before October 7th, was access to clean drinking water and it’s only been horrifically exacerbated by Israel’s nonstop bombardment. A 2019 report by UNICEF noted that “96 percent of water from Gaza’s sole aquifer is unfit for human consumption.”

Intermittent electricity, a direct result of Israel’s blockade, has also damaged Gaza’s sanitation facilities, leading to increased groundwater contamination, which has, in turn, led to various infections and massive outbreaks of preventable waterborne diseases. According to HRW, Israel is using a lack of food and drinking water as a tool of warfare, which many international observers argue is a form of collective punishment — a war crime of the first order. Israeli forces have intentionally destroyed farmland and bombed water and sanitation facilities in what certainly seems like an effort to make Gaza all too literally unlivable.

“I have to walk three kilometers to get one gallon [of water],” 30-year-old Marwan told HRW. Along with hundreds of thousands of other Gazans, Marwan fled to the south with his pregnant wife and two children in early November. “And there is no food. If we are able to find food, it is canned food. Not all of us are eating well.”

In the south of Gaza, near the overcrowded city of Khan Younis, raw sewage flows through the streets as sanitation services have ceased operation. In the southern town of Rafah, where so many Gazans have fled, conditions are beyond dire. Makeshift U.N. hospitals are overwhelmed, food and water are in short supply, and starvation is significantly on the rise. In late December, the World Health Organization (WHO) documented more than 100,000 cases of diarrhea and 150,000 respiratory infections in a Gazan population of about 2.3 million. And those numbers are likely massive undercounts and will undoubtedly increase as Israel’s offensive drags on, having already displaced 1.9 million people, or more than 85% of the population, half of whom are now facing starvation, according to the U.N.

“For over two months, Israel has been depriving Gaza’s population of food and water, a policy spurred on or endorsed by high-ranking Israeli officials and reflecting an intent to starve civilians as a method of warfare,” reports Omar Shakir of Human Rights Watch.

Rarely, if ever, have the perpetrators of mass murder (reportedly now afraid of South Africa’s filing at the International Court of Justice in the Hague, accusing Israel of genocide) so plainly laid out their cruel intentions. As Israeli President Isaac Herzog put it in a callous attempt to justify the atrocities now being faced by Palestinian civilians, “It’s an entire nation out there that is responsible [for October 7th]. This rhetoric about civilians not aware, not involved, it’s absolutely not true. They could’ve risen up, they could have fought against that evil regime.”

The violence inflicted on Palestinians by an Israel backed so strikingly by President Biden and his foreign policy team is unlike anything we had previously witnessed in more or less real-time in the news and on social media. Gaza, its people, and the lands that have sustained them for centuries are being desecrated and transformed into an all too unlivable hellscape, the impact of which will be felt — it’s a guarantee — for generations to come.

This piece first appeared at TomDispatch.

JOSHUA FRANK is the managing editor of CounterPunch. He is the author of the new book, Atomic Days: The Untold Story of the Most Toxic Place in America, published by Haymarket Books. He can be reached at joshua@counterpunch.org. You can troll him on Twitter @joshua__frank.

MANNIE AND KENDALL'S LOST WEB PAGES

Our web pages got lost when this laptop jammed because it got too full, so that the normal FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL programmes wouldn't work any longer.

Fortunately the Wayback Machine, part of the INTERNET ARCHIVE, based in San Francisco, provided some answers. Hopefully, here they are:

1) red-jos

http://web.archive.org/web/20220124041643/http://red-jos.net

2) josken

http://web.archive.org/web/20210127101909/http://josken.net

THE LEGACY OF THE MARIKANA MASSACRE,TEN YEARS LATER

A cross of remembrance during the commemoration on 16 August 2016 of the 2012 Marikana massacre in Rustenburg. (Photo: Gallo Images / Sowetan / Antonio Muchave) Maverick Citizen

MOMENT OF TRUTH OP-ED

The legacy of the Marikana massacre, ten years later By Benjamin Fogel 11 Aug 2022 0

For many, the massacre was the moment when the blinkers were removed and the underlying injustices that have stunted the development of South African democracy were revealed in all their brutality.

Listen to this article 0:00 / 8:01 BeyondWords This Op-Ed forms part of “Marikana, 10 Years On”, a one-day symposium which will be held at Constitution Hill in Johannesburg on 20 August from 12pm to 6.30pm. If one were to pick a moment when the narrative of post-apartheid South Africa as a nation, for all its faults, generally stumbling forward in the right direction ended; no moment stands out as clearly as the Marikana massacre, when on 16 August 2012, 34 striking mineworkers were gunned down by the police on live TV. In the week preceding the massacre, 10 others had been killed. Over the 10 years since the massacre, the country has become poorer, more violent and divided. GDP per capita has declined from just over $8,000 to under $7,000, unemployment is now close to 50%, the basic functions of government have collapsed in much of the country, the labour movement has grown weaker and more divided, and the threat of political violence to activists is ever more apparent. Join the 230 000 South Africans who read First Thing newsletter. Each week that passes in South Africa seems to bring with it a report of some new atrocity, from mass tavern shootings to xenophobic attacks and political assassinations. Last year’s July insurrection reflected that the country faces a growing threat posed by mass unrest, political mafias and right-wing ethno-nationalist politics (most notably by a slate of black majority parties) which the state is evidently ill-equipped to manage; in large part because the influence of these mafias extends across all levels of government. But what does this all have to do with Marikana? If one were to ask, how did we get to the South Africa of 2022 after State Capture, following the absurdly corrupt and brutal Covid lockdown regulations, the July insurrection, the Life Esidimeni tragedy, and suffering regular blackouts and with a burnt-out hollow shell where there used to be our Parliament? Marikana is a good place to begin. Marikana was the moment when the core institutions of South African democracy — not just limited to the state — failed. It was the worst massacre of its kind under the democratic order, in which the police — who belonged to Cosatu, the same trade union federation as many of the striking mineworkers — shot and killed striking workers under the auspices of the ANC government that promised a better future for workers. An atrocity that was defended by Cosatu leaders and the SA Communist Party. In the aftermath of the atrocity, with some notable exceptions, our civil society — from NGOs to media, social movements and trade unions — failed to hold the government to account or even provide meaningful solidarity with the victims of the massacre, either opting for silence or in some cases actively reproducing the state’s justifications. The failure of much of the South African media remains even more apparent, given that the killings were broadcast on live television. The core institutions of our democracy, from the National Prosecuting Authority to Parliament, failed to hold the government and police to account, even after an inquiry found that former police commissioner Riah Phiyega should be held responsible for the deaths of the 34 mineworkers. Since 2012, no police officer has been charged for any of the shootings. If anything, the police are more violent and incompetent than ever. Instead, it took the work of a few dedicated journalists and researchers for the actual story of what happened that day to be revealed to the public. It took even longer for the documentary Miners Shot Down and the findings of the Farlam Commission to change public consciousness about what transpired on 16 August 2012. Political amnesia Marikana stands out as one of the political moments in South Africa that has fallen victim to the plague of political amnesia that stalks the country, as the warring factions of the ANC use it as a weapon for their internal struggles: members of the pro-Jacob Zuma Radical Economic Transformation faction use it to attack President Cyril Ramaphosa, despite the fact that the massacre occurred under Zuma’s watch. Others still refer to it as though it was some sort of natural disaster, a tragedy that ultimately nobody was responsible for. Ten years later, justice remains elusive for most survivors of Marikana. While 35 families have been paid compensation of approximately R70-million, a larger group of more than 300 miners who were injured during the shooting rampage are still trying to claim compensation of R1-billion. In a recent development, the high court ruled that Ramaphosa could be found liable for the events that led up to the massacre for his role as a Lonmin director. However, proving civil liability will be up to the mineworkers to try to accomplish in court. There is also the ongoing trial of former North West deputy police commissioner Major-General William Mpembe and other police officers for the murder of five people at Marikana on 13 August 2012. Mpembe and his colleagues face five counts of murder and attempted murder as well as contravening the Commissions Act for giving false information during the Farlam Commission. But 10 years later, public interest has all but dissipated and the old legal maxim could not be truer: justice delayed is justice denied. While political battles are waged through protracted court proceedings, the workers of the Platinum Belt in North West face ongoing exploitation, dysfunctional government, political violence (at least 22 workers have been murdered since the massacre), material deprivation and the predatory lending schemes of mashonisas (loan sharks) and payday loan companies. For many, including myself, the massacre was the moment when the blinkers were removed and the underlying injustices that have stunted the development of South African democracy were revealed in all their brutality. The lack of public outrage in the wake of the massacre and the absence of mass protests and solidarity remain a cause of shame for the country. The indifference of the public became even starker even as the workers of the Platinum Belt embarked on one of the largest wildcat strikes in our history, and in 2014-2015 would win the longest strike in South African history. Marikana has come to serve as a potent symbol of resistance for the South African working class, employed by protesting students, striking workers and community protests. The Marikana strikes went on to influence and inspire other workers’ movements outside the Platinum Belt, like the farmworker strikes in De Doorns in the Western Cape in 2012-13 which galvanised more than 9,000 participants in their mission to improve their working conditions. The lesson of Marikana is that even under the most difficult circumstances effective mobilisation and organisation are possible — workers across the Platinum Belt opted to join and expand the strike rather than mourn silently or surrender. It is this extraordinary moment that provides a rallying cry for those who still wish to see a more just and equal South Africa. DM Benjamin Fogel is a PhD candidate in Latin American history at New York University and a Jacobin contributing editor. Fogel is one of the organisers of “Marikana, 10 Years On”, a one-day symposium at Constitution Hill in Johannesburg on 20 August from 12pm to 6.30pm. The symposium will also be streamed online. The event is presented by Africa Is a Country, with support from Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung (Southern African Office). Logistical details will be posted at http://africasacountry.com

COVER-IUP EXPOSED - SECURITY BRANCH COPS KILLED NEIL AGGETT, JUDGE RULES

South Africa
COVER-UP EXPOSED

Security Branch cops killed Neil Aggett, judge rules

Fawu members hold up a banner with Aggett and other unionists' photos outside the Johannesburg High Cour.Photo:Ufrieda Ho
By Ufrieda Ho
4 Mar 2022

The trade unionist and doctor Neil Aggett did not die by suicide but by the hand of security branch cops, Judge Motsamai Makume ruled, calling the magistrate's findings from the original inquest 'a serious error of judgment' and his conclusions 'mind-blowing'.

The overturning of findings of the 1982 inquest into the death in detention of activist and trade unionist Dr Neil Aggett on 4 March brings to close a two-year court journey. It also sets in motion avenues to prosecute the Security Branch police officers linked to his killing.

Judge Motsamai Makume gave his ruling in the Johannesburg High Court, calling Magistrate Pieter Kotze’s finding from the original inquest “a serious error of judgment”. He also said some of Kotze’s conclusions were “mind-blowing”. Makume ruled that Aggett, who was found hanged in his police cell in John Vorster Square police station on 5 February 1981, did not die by suicide, as Kotze had ruled, and he said Security Branch police officers were responsible for Aggett’s murder in the early hours of that morning.

Neil Aggett’s nephews from his older brother Michael and his sister-in-law Mavis were in the Johannesburg High Court to hear the ruling. From left are Jonathan Aggett, David Aggett, Mavis Aggett, Simon Aggett and Stephen Aggett.Photo:Ufrieda Ho

In recapping the key evidence that came before his court on and off over the past two years, Makume was unequivocal about the Security Branch’s culture of torture and abuse of political detainees, an entrenched web of cover-ups and a still-persistent allegiance demonstrated in his court to protect its members – even those who have died in the 40 years since Aggett was killed.

The judge said it was unfortunate that Lieutenant Steve Whitehead, who was the chief interrogator in Aggett’s case and implicated in his killing, died before he could testify in court.

Whitehead died of cancer just days before the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) finally announced that it would reopen the inquest in April 2019. That Whitehead and Major Arthur Conwright, who was head of the Security Branch at John Vorster Square, never had to face questioning in a court has remained a bitter pill to swallow for activists and families of activists who died in detention. It continues to raise questions about the reasons for delays and the political interference standing in the way of bringing conclusion to cases that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended for investigation by the NPA in 2003 already.

Fawu organiser Thabo Kota was among the union members who gathered outside court awaiting the ruling.Photo:Ufrieda Ho

Yasmin Sooka, executive director of the Foundation for Human Rights (FHR) that has supported the Aggett family to find the truth about his final days in detention, said the next step is to explore criminal prosecutions of the surviving former Security Branch police officers implicated in Aggett’s killing.

“This ruling is unequivocal and the judge has clearly set up the next phase of investigation for murder and the cover-up of murder – that’s amazing. We need to place pressure on the Hawks and the NPA to conduct investigations while Nicolaas Deleefs, Johannes Nicolaas Visser, Daniel Elardus Swanepoel and Magezi Eddie Chauke are still alive. If they do this quickly enough we may have indictments for murder,” Sooka said.

DM/MC

*This is a developing story and more in-depth reporting will be published in the next few days.