Statement by President Higgins on the death of Louise Asmal

Statement by President Higgins on the death of Louise Asmal

Date: Tue 26th Nov, 2024 | 14:03

"May I join with all of those, and they will be so many - across Ireland, Britain, South Africa and beyond, who have spoken of their sadness on learning of the death of Louise Asmal.

Louise and her late husband, Professor Kader Asmal, were dear friends of Sabina and myself throughout their 27 years in Dublin. They were at the very heart of the Irish Anti-Apartheid Movement, which they co-founded in 1964.

Louise and Kader worked tirelessly to make the IAAM a truly inclusive movement, one which could unite people from all walks of life, against the inhumane apartheid regime which prevailed in South Africa. As a couple, they themselves were excluded from entering South Africa during this time. Inter-racial marriages were prohibited and it was a criminal offence for mixed-race couples to cohabit.

Together Louise and Kader, with the support of their many colleagues, organized some of the biggest political marches in Ireland of the time. Appealing to a sense of common humanity and shared values, what emerged was one of the most organised action groups in the country. For many of our generation, ending apartheid was the great defining moral argument of the second half of the 20th century.

This work, which so often drew a hostile reception from some quarters of Irish society, had a deeply tangible impact with Ireland becoming the first western European country to support sanctions against the apartheid state of South Africa and, in 1987, the first western country to ban South African imports.

Louise was to the forefront of all of this work, and most importantly its main secretarial and organisational centre, using the skills which she had honed as an activist in the National Council for Civil Liberties in London, where she had worked non-stop to build awareness and political action against apartheid.

The Asmal home in Deansgrange became a constant hive of activity. Louise has previously reminisced on how the South African Bill of Rights was drafted in their home - with Kader writing in the kitchen, Albie Sachs writing in the dining room, and Louise herself typing up their writings in what was to become one of the seminal documents in the development of South Africa, one which was subsequently incorporated into the new South African Constitution.

Following the fall of apartheid, Louise and Kader were instrumental figures in the cultural, academic, and political landscapes of Cape Town, with Kader serving as an influential member of President Nelson Mandela's government, and Louise continuing her trademark hard work behind the scenes as a writer, researcher, administrator and human rights activist. Louise was to also make a significant contribution as a board member for many years of the Institute for Reconciliation and Justice.

The Asmal home in Ireland was always one of such clear love, with Louise and Kader sharing ideas with and caring deeply for their sons, Adam and Rafiq. Indeed, I was pleased to learn from Adam in just recent days that a bronze statue of Kader will shortly be unveiled in the Long March to Freedom procession of statues in Century City, Cape Town.

On behalf of Sabina and myself, may I extend my deepest condolences to Adam and Rafiq, to Louise's grandaughter Zoe, her sister Stephanie, and to all of her family, colleagues and many friends throughout the world."