Benjamin Pogrund (born 1933) is a South African-born

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i author.

Biography

Benjamin Pogrund was brought up in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

. He began a career as a

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

in 1958, writing for ''

The Rand Daily Mail ''The Rand Daily Mail'' was a South African newspaper published from 1902 until it was controversially closed in 1985 after adopting an outspoken anti-apartheid stance in the midst of a massive clampdown on activists by the security forces. The ...

'' 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 ...

, where he eventually became deputy-editor. The ''Rand Daily Mail'' was the only newspaper in

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 ...

at that time to report on events in black South African

townships A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

. In the course of his work he came to know the major players in the

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

struggle and gained the respect and confidence of leaders such as

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

. Pogrund was a reporter at the

Sharpeville massacre The Sharpeville massacre occurred on 21 March 1960 at the police station in the township of Sharpeville in the then Transvaal Province of the then Union of South Africa (today part of Gauteng). After demonstrating against pass laws, a crowd of ...

on 21 March 1960. He was author of a 1965 series on beating and torture of black inmates and maltreatment of white political prisoners based on a series of interviews with

Harold Strachan Robert Harold Lundie "Jock" Strachan (1 December 1925 – 7 February 2020) was a white South African writer and anti-apartheid activist. He flew for the South African Air Force during the Second World War, trained as an artist, then became Umkh ...

. During his career reporting on apartheid in South Africa he was put on trial several times, put in prison once, had his passport revoked and was investigated as a threat to the state by security police. The ''Rand Daily Mail'' ceased publication in 1985 and Pogrund left for

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1986. There he was the foreign editor at London's ''Today'', and later chief foreign sub-editor of ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', London. Later he was editor of ''The WorldPaper'' in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, and reported from South Africa in ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

''. He has authored books on

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

and the South African press under apartheid. Pogrund

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

to Israel in 1997. He settled in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

with his wife Anne, an artist. He is the founder of Yakar's Centre for Social Concern. He was a member of the Israeli delegation to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

World Conference against Racism The World Conference Against Racism (WCAR) is a series of international events organized by UNESCO to promote struggle against racism ideologies and behaviours. Five conferences have been held so far, in 1978, 1983, 2001, 2009 and 2021. Founded ...

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

Views and opinions

According to Pogrund, the term apartheid was being used falsely as a charge against Israel: "Anyone who knows what apartheid was, and who knows Israel today, is aware of that. Use of the apartheid label is at best ignorant and naïve and at worst cynical and manipulative." In 2020, however, he stated that his assessment might change if

Benjamin Netanyahu Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...

went ahead with his 2020 electoral proposal to annex the West Bank , stating that if the plan were to be implemented, his evaluation would differ:' tleast it has been a military occupation. Now we are going to put other people under our control and not give them citizenship. That is apartheid. That is an exact mirror of what apartheid was n South Africa'

Recognition and awards

Pogrund was the recipient of the 2005-06 Dr. Jean Mayer Global Citizenship Award.Dr. Jean Mayer Global Citizenship Award Recipients

Published works

* ''How can man die better: The life of Robert Sobukwe'' *''Shared Histories: A Palestinian-Israeli Dialogue'' (Left Coast Press, 30, 2005) * *''Sobukwe and Apartheid'' (New Jersey:Rutgers Univ Press, 1991; Johannesburg: Jonathan Ball Publishers, 1991) *''Drawing Fire: Investigating the Accusations of Apartheid in Israel.'' Rowman & Littlefield, 2014

Articles

Why depict Israel as a chamber of horrors like no other in the world?
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 8 February 2006
Palestinians and Israelis must be able to meet to talk peace
'' Daily Star'', 27 June 2006

Children's books

*''Nelson Mandela: Leader Against Apartheid'' (World Peacemakers) (Blackbirch Press, 2003)

References

External links

Benjamin Pogrund Papers
at Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library
Yakar's Center For Social Concern
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070220073918/http://www.wits.ac.za/histp/sobukwe.htm Collection of historical papers on Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe donated to The University of the Witwatersrand Library by Benjamin Pogrund]
The Journalism that Midwifed the New South AfricaA new Tikva for all Israelis - Fathom Journal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pogrund, Benjamin 1933 births Living people South African Jews South African emigrants to Israel Israeli people of South African-Jewish descent South African journalists Jewish South African anti-apartheid activists Israeli activists White South African anti-apartheid activists Date of birth missing (living people)