Thambi Naransamy Naidoo or Roy Naidoo (1901-1953) was a

South African __NOTOC__ South African may relate to: * The nation of South Africa * South African Airways * South African English * South African people * Languages of South Africa * Southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the Afric ...

political activist. He was of South African Indian

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

descent. He is the son of an early collaborator of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

Thambi Naidoo Thambi Naidoo (1875 - 1933) was an early collaborator of Mahatma Gandhi. Born in 1875 in Mauritius to Tamil migrants from India, he migrated to Kimberley (then part of the Cape Colony) in 1889. He moved to Johannesburg in 1892 where he worked as ...

. He was married to another activist

Amma Naidoo Manonmoney Ama Naidoo OLS (née Pillay; 30 November 1908 – 25 December 1993) or Ama Naidoo was a South African anti-apartheid activist. Family and early life Naidoo was of South African Indian Tamil descent and was born in Asiatic Bazaar P ...

He was born in 1901 in

Pietermaritzburg Pietermaritzburg (; Zulu: umGungundlovu) is the capital and second-largest city in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1838 and is currently governed by the Msunduzi Local Municipality. Its Zulu name umGungundlovu ...

Colony of Natal The Colony of Natal was a British colony in south-eastern Africa. It was proclaimed a British colony on 4 May 1843 after the British government had annexed the Boer Republic of Natalia, and on 31 May 1910 combined with three other colonies to ...

. He was adopted by the family of Mahatma

Mohandas Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

and went to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

for his education, where he studied under the poet

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

. He became a trade unionist and leader of bakery workers on the Rand. In 1946 he helped organise the campaign by Indians against the Asiatic Land Tenure and Indian Representation Act; he served two terms of imprisonment for passive resistance. He was active again in the 1952 Defiance Campaign and also served as vice-president of the

Transvaal Indian Congress The South African Indian Congress (SAIC) was an organisation founded in 1921 in Natal Province, Natal (now KwaZulu-Natal), South Africa. The congress is famous for its strong participation by Mahatma Gandhi and other prominent South African India ...

and chairman of the Transvaal Peace Council. He died in 1953. He was the father of Shanti Naidoo and

Indres Naidoo Indres Elatchininathan Naidoo (26 August 1936 – 8 January 2016) was a South African anti-apartheid activist. An early member of the people's liberation army, Umkhonto we Sizwe, Naidoo served 10 years in prison on Robben Island for sabotage betw ...

, both active opponents of the South African regime.

References

Gerhart G.M and Karis T. (ed)(1977). From Protest to challenge: A documentary History of African Politics in South Africa: 1882–1964, Vol.4 Political Profiles 1882 ? 1964. Hoover Institution Pres: Stanford University 1901 births 1953 deaths South African people of Tamil descent People from Pietermaritzburg South African Indian Congress politicians South African politicians of Indian descent South African expatriates in India {{SouthAfrica-activist-stub