Cape Town - The community of Lavender Hill, the ANC and the family of late housing and freedom activist Howard Soetwater are mourning his sudden death on election day.
Soetwater, 56, was a respected freedom fighter during apartheid and will be remembered for his role in the struggle for housing for the poor and marginalised in the southern suburbs.
In the 1990s, Soetwater and fellow comrades in Lavender Hill, mostly women, organised themselves under the Lavender Hill Civic Association and fought hard for houses, which culminated in the development of the Hillview area.
Later, with other comrades in the early 2000s, Soetwater organised people living in backyards to fight for houses, which eventually led to the establishment of Cuba Heights, which today stands as a proud testament to his strong resolve to fight for rights.
Soetwater died on the evening of May 29 while celebrating with fellow comrades in Retreat after he voted for the last time, for the party that has been his political home his whole life, the ANC.
His sister, Apostle Dorothy Soetwater, 59, said his passing was sudden, as he was not ill.
“As a family we are in shock because we did not expect it.
“He was still fine the morning when he left the house to vote, but we got the call around 8.30pm when one of the comrades phoned to say he was sick and I said they should phone the ambulance.
“According to my understanding the ambulance came and tried CPR for an hour, but by the time we got there he was dead already. We suspect it was a heart attack,” Dorothy Soetwater said.
“It is a great loss, he was selfless and never wanted honour because his heart was for the community.
“He was a real fighter, especially for the people’s houses. I told him recently that he needs to relax now and he said ‘no’, he must first see that people get their houses.”
As a youth, Soetwater joined ANC military wing uMkhonto weSizwe and stoned vehicles and burned tyres in the fight for freedom.
He joined local organisations such as the Cape Youth Congress, Congress of SA Students, and the UDF.
ANC provincial spokesperson Khalid Sayed conveyed his condolences to Soetwater’s family.
“The ANC in the Western Cape dips its revolutionary flag of the passing of veteran activist, a servant leader, someone who represented the true ideals of the African National Congress, comrade Howard Soetwater from the community of Lavender Hill on his passing.
“We extend our condolences to his family, his friends, loved ones and all his comrades. The community of Lavender Hill, Cape Town, as well as the Western Cape and South Africa is poorer without comrade Howard Soetwater.” His funeral will be on Saturday at 8am, at Algemene Christelike Kerk, Eltister Road, Lavender Hill.
Cape Argus