Alwyn Schlebusch Explained

Alwyn Schlebusch
Office:Vice State President of South Africa
Term Start:1 January 1982
Term End:14 September 1984
President:Marais Viljoen
Primeminister:P. W. Botha
Office2:Speaker of Parliament of South Africa
Term Start2:1974
Term End2:1976
Successor2:Loots, J.
Birth Name:Alwyn Louis Schlebusch
Birth Date:1917 9, df=yes
Birth Place:Lady Grey, Cape Province, South Africa
Death Place:Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa
Party:National
Spouse:Isabella Elizabeth Krause and Jeanette Rouen
Children:4
Alma Mater:University of Pretoria
Occupation:Politician

Alwyn Louis Schlebusch[1] (16 September 1917  - 7 January 2008) was a South African politician, the only holder of the title Vice State President of South Africa from 1 January 1982 to 14 September 1984. He was an Afrikaner with a surname of German origin. He was born in Lady Grey, Eastern Cape.[2] He was the son of Charel Johannes Schlebusch and Elizabeth Cornelia Myburgh and eldest brother of Charel Johannes Schlebusch, Elsie Cornelia Schlebusch and Anna Christina Schlebusch.

Career

Schlebusch was appointed chair of the eponymous Schlebusch Commission[3] in 1972, which had the power to cut foreign funding and seize the assets of anti-apartheid organizations, such as the Christian Institute of Southern Africa.

The position of Vice State President was created when the Senate was abolished in 1981.[4] During his tenure, Schlebusch chaired the President's Council, which advised on the creation of a new constitution. The post was abolished when the new constitution came into effect, replacing the ceremonial post of State President with an executive State President, with only provision for an Acting State President.[5]

Before holding the post, Schlebusch was mayor of Hennenman in the 1940s, before being elected to the House of Assembly as MP for Kroonstad from 1962 to 1980, Minister of Public Works and Immigration in 1976, and Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs in 1979. Schlebusch succeeded Jimmy Kruger in the portfolio and was viewed as a considerably more moderate figure, notably he was instrumental in compelling the Pretoria Bar Association to admit black lawyers.

Subsequently, he held the position of Minister in the Office of the President in 1986. He died on 7 January 2008. He was survived by a son and two daughters, 14 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren. His wife, Isabel, died in 1996 of cancer. She founded the "Toktokkie" cancer campaign in South Africa.[6]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: SCHLEBUSCH, Alwyn Louis 1917-2008_1. genealogy.org.za. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140714214622/http://www.genealogy.org.za/biblio/main.php?g2_itemId=291. 14 July 2014.
  2. Web site: Index Sc-Sf. rulers.org.
  3. http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/schlebusch-dies-in-pretoria-384948 Schlebusch dies in Pretoria
  4. Book: Christopher R. Hill. Change in South Africa: Blind Alleys Or New Directions?. 1983. Rowman & Littlefield. 978-0-86036-200-5. 157.
  5. Book: D. Marais. Constitutional Development of South Africa. 1985. Macmillan South Africa. 978-0-86954-218-7. 65.
  6. Web site: SA's only state vice-president dies at 90. Mail & Guardian. 7 January 2008.