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Breytenbach was a celebrated wordsmith, a leading voice in
literature in Afrikaans — an offshoot of Dutch that was
developed by white settlers — and a fierce critic of apartheid
that was imposed against the country's Black majority between
1948 and 1990.
He moved to Paris but on a clandestine trip to his home country
in 1975 he was arrested on allegations that he assisted Nelson
Mandela’s then-outlawed African National Congress group in its
sabotage campaign against the white-minority government.
He was convicted of treason and served seven years in prison.
Upon his release he based himself in Paris, where he continued
his anti-apartheid activism.
Breytenbach is best known for “Confessions of an Albino
Terrorist," his account of his imprisonment and the events
leading to it.
His work addressed themes of exile, identity and justice, his
family said.
“Known for his masterful poetry collections in Afrikaans, as
well as autobiographical works such as ‘The True Confessions of
an Albino Terrorist’ and ‘A Season in Paradise,' he fearlessly
addressed themes of exile, identity and justice," their
statement said.
Breytenbach was a poet, novelist, painter and activist whose
work touched on and influenced literature and the arts both
domestically and abroad, his family added.
He was born in the Western Cape province in 1939, but spent much
of his life abroad.
He joined Okhela, an ideological wing of South Africa’s African
National Congress, in exile, but remained deeply connected to
his South African roots.
He is survived by his wife, Yolande, daughter Daphnée and two
grandsons.
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