Billy Modise was an

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...

(ANC) veteran and former ambassador. He was born on 18 December 1930 in Bloemfontein and died on 20 June 2018.

Early life

Billy Modise was born on 8 December 1930 in Bloemfontein, Orange Free State (now Free State Province).

Education

He received an Anglican scholarship which enabled him to enrol for secondary school in Modeerport. After completing his schooling, between 1950 and 1955 Modise worked at a wholesale store and later for a medical doctor as a clerk to raise money to enable him to further his studies at university. In January 1955, he enrolled at the

University of Fort Hare The University of Fort Hare is a public university in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It was a key institution of higher education for Africans from 1916 to 1959 when it offered a Western-style academic education to students from across sub ...

to study medicine. As a student at Fort Hare, he came into contact with politicians such as Professor

ZK Matthews Zachariah Keodirelang "ZK" Matthews (20 October 1901 – 11 May 1968) was a prominent black academic in South Africa, lecturing at South African Native College (renamed University of Fort Hare in 1955), where many future leaders of the African ...

and Govan Mbeki who inspired him to become politically active. He was elected Secretary of the ANC Youth League for the Fort Hare branch, and later served as secretary of the Student Representative Council. He also became a member of the

National Union of South African Students The National Union of South African Students (NUSAS) was an important force for liberalism and later radicalism in South African student anti-apartheid politics. Its mottos included non-racialism and non-sexism. Early history NUSAS was founde ...

(NUSAS) serving as an executive member. In 1959 he switched from studying medicine to a BA degree.

Exile and return

While at Fort Hare University, the apartheid government introduced the University Extension Bill, which legalised tertiary segregation, forcing students of different races to go to separate universities. He was at the forefront of fighting against the bill but did not succeed. In January 1960 he was asked by NUSAS to attend a conference in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. Fearing arrest he initially declined, although after advice from his family and the ANC he then accepted. It was around that time that the Lund University Students Union in Sweden offered him a scholarship to go abroad and study medicine. While studying in Sweden, he started mobilizing college student formations against Apartheid and networking on behalf of the ANC. He was a founding member of the South African Committee in Lund alongside Lars-Erik Johansson and Ulf Agrell. The Committee convened meetings, printed publications, leaflets and campaigned parliamentarians to help the battle against Apartheid. Between 1960 and 1972, Modise travelled across

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

in an attempt to mobilize people in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

to boycott all

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

n products. In 1966, the ANC Youth and Student Section (ANC YSS) was formed, with Former President Thabo Mbeki as leader in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. ANC YSS would later play critical roles in the country’s transition to a democracy. The leadership of the ANC YSS included Billy Modise,

Joe Nhlanhla Joseph Mbuku Nhlanhla (4 December 1936 – 2 July 2008) was an African National Congress national executive and the former South African Intelligence Minister. Early life Born in Sophiatown, near Johannesburg, Nhlanhla attended the Ikage Primar ...

who would later become Mbeki’s first minister of intelligence and was the chair of the ASA ( The African Students Association) in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

and Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), Jackie Selebi along with many others. The ANC YSS had two main objectives: looking after the welfare of the ANC youth and mobilising youth against apartheid internationally In 1975, he was redeployed to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

to work in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

for the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat)‚ where he was preparing policy papers on resettlements. From 1976 to 1988‚ he also worked for the UN‚ training exiled Namibians in political science‚ sociology and education‚ among other courses. In 1988, he left the UN to work for the ANC full-time. He was sent back to Sweden as chief representative of the ANC. Modise returned to

in 1990 and was deployed at the ANC head office in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

. In 1991 he was tasked with heading the Matla Trust‚ which had been established to prepare for the 1994 elections at the then Shell House ANC headquarters. After the first democratic elections, he was posted abroad as

’s High Commissioner to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in 1995, to become democratic South Africa’s first black High Commissioner. He also served as the Chief of State Protocol under President Thabo Mbeki from 1999 to 2006. Modise served on a number of boards, including those of South African Airways and Kgodiso Investments.

Marriage and family

Billy Modise married Yolisa Bokwe in 1964. They then went on to have three children, Bontle, Tshepo and Thandi.

Accolades

Modise was a recipient of the annual Ubuntu Awards, which recognise South African industry leaders and distinguished persons for their distinguished service and contribution to promoting

’s national interests and values across the world. In 2008, Ambassador Modise received the Order of Luthuli – Silver Class from former President Thabo Mbeki for excellent contribution in the achievement of a

free of racial oppression and contributing to the building of a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic

. He also received the Premier’s Excellence Award from the Premier of the Free State for his contribution towards the liberation struggle and

in general. On 16 November 2017, the Swedish Ambassador to South Africa, H.E. Ambassador Cecilia Julin, at the decision of His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, bestowed the Order of the Polar Star on ACCORD Trustee H.E. Ambassador Billy Modise. Ambassador Modise was a member of ACCORD’s Board of Trustees from 2007 until his death in June 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Modise, Billy 1930 births 2018 deaths South African activists People from Bloemfontein African National Congress politicians Members of the African National Congress Members of the Order of Luthuli