Denis Goldberg: principled to the last

TALI FEINBERG

Goldberg, who died at the age of 87 in Cape Town on 29 April, struggled with his Jewish identity, but this mellowed somewhat in later years. Ilan Solomons played an important role in this transformation.

The son of left-wing, immigrant parents, Goldberg was born in 1933 and grew up in Cape Town. “He faced anti-Semitic attacks at school, which contributed to his growing political awareness,” says Solomons. “I first met Denis in 2010 at a screening of the documentary Comrade Goldberg. He was also launching his autobiography.

“He signed a copy of the book, and we struck up a conversation. My friend, Benji Shulman, and I spoke to him for about an hour. That was Denis: he had all the time in the world to speak to people. We were involved with the South African Union of Jewish Students, and asked if he would be interested in speaking to university students. He was excited about it, and we went ahead with it.

“We also arranged for a screening of Comrade Goldberg followed by a Q&A and book signing at the Rabbi Cyril Harris Community Centre (RCHCC), which drew a substantial crowd. People loved hearing his story. During the same trip, we arranged a meeting between Denis and Rabbi Ben Isaacson, who was an important and often lone anti-apartheid voice in the rabbinate. Denis thanked Rabbi Isaacson for all he had done at great personal cost to himself.

“That year, I was a madrich (leader) at Bnei Akiva, and I suggested that even though Denis was a completely secular Jew, his story would be of great value to us. And so it was that Denis drove more than 390km to and from the Bnei Akiva campsite,” says Solomons.

“It was a miracle. Not only was Denis prepared to drive that distance to speak to young people, but he was a lifelong non-Zionist, secular Jew. Bnei Akiva was, and still is, a religious Zionist youth movement, and by all standards, you couldn’t find two more polar opposites. But he was very impressed with camp, and said that the spirit of volunteerism was something that should be emulated throughout South Africa. He spoke to an absolutely packed Bnei Akiva shul on Shabbos afternoon.”

It was the beginning of a deepening engagement with the Jewish community. Says South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) National Director Wendy Kahn, “The doors on both sides were always open. While there were areas of disagreement, he was forthright and engaging, always willing to speak and participate in initiatives aimed at furthering the cause of democracy and social justice in South Africa. It was a relationship that the SAJBD greatly valued.”

Goldberg has always loomed large as a symbol of sacrifice and struggle for his niece, Democratic Alliance Member of Parliament Madeleine Hicklin. She says he was dedicated to the dignity of others above all else.

“We were both children of activist parents, and both didn’t want to automatically follow in their footsteps,” says Justice Albie Sachs, who knew Goldberg all his life. “We both went to the University of Cape Town, where he was an avid rugby player. Then we became active in the non-racial Modern Youth Society and in the struggle,” recalls Sachs.

“While I was a talker, Denis was a doer,” says Sachs. “He went underground, became an Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) member, and used his practical skills as an engineer to prepare for the armed struggle.

“He married Esme Bodenstein, and they had the most open home in Cape Town. Everybody went there, no matter what colour they were, at the height of apartheid. It was a spirited home – full of laughter, energy, and defiance. I think Denis held onto some of that spirit during everything he endured after being arrested,” says Sachs.

On 11 July 1963, the security police raided the secret MK headquarters Liliesleaf farmhouse in Rivonia. Goldberg was arrested along with several others including four other Jews, all of whom have since died.

He was sentenced to four terms of life imprisonment. At 31 years old, he was the youngest of those sentenced. Goldberg was sent to Pretoria Central Prison, while the others were sent to Robben Island. Being apart from his comrades was tough, and he was mostly alone in his cell. Both his parents died while he was incarcerated.

“I was seven when Denis was arrested,” recalls Hicklin. Having a family member so dedicated to his cause wasn’t without its hardships. Hicklin’s mother came to South Africa from Vilnius in Lithuania. “On the very day of his [Goldberg’s] arrest, they revoked her permanent residency,” Hicklin says. “My cousins and aunt came to live with us before going into exile in the United Kingdom (UK). I would hear Esme crying every night,” recalls Hicklin.

She says Goldberg’s children, Hilary and David, struggled without their father, although they visited him in prison as much as possible. “I would drive them there. The last time they would see him before going back to the UK was always the hardest.”

Hicklin has always been proud of her uncle. “When we were kids, we would hear about the swart gevaar [black danger] and the communists at school. I remember standing up on my chair and saying, ‘You know nothing. My uncle is Denis Goldberg. He is my hero.’ I had such admiration for this man and what he stood for.”

Hicklin recounts how Goldberg’s daughter, Hilary, eventually settled in Israel, where her kibbutz set up a committee to try to get her father released from prison. Herut Lapid, who campaigned for the release of Jewish prisoners worldwide, became involved. Under further pressure, the South African government released Goldberg after 22 years in prison. He went to Israel, where he struggled with the notion of a Jewish state. “He battled with his Jewish identity his whole life,” says his niece.

He soon left for the UK, where his family attempted to restore the years it had lost. There were joyful moments, such as Hilary’s wedding, and tragedy – Esme died in 2000, and Hilary passed away a year later.

Hicklin recalls that her aunt never wanted to return to South Africa after all the trauma she suffered as a result of her husband’s incarceration. But Goldberg eventually remarried Edelgard Nkobi, and returned to Pretoria and then Cape Town. Nkobi passed away in 2006.

“Again, in a very practical way, he assisted the ANC, working under the water affairs and forestry portfolio,” recalls Sachs. “A few years back, he was dismayed by aspects of our political leadership, but then overjoyed when the worst elements of corruption were removed.”

Goldberg settled in Hout Bay, where he began to realise his dream of an art and culture education centre for disadvantaged youth.

Sachs saw Goldberg a number of times over the past year, where they spoke on various platforms. “Even though he was battling cancer, he was extraordinary. He definitely felt that he had fulfilled his life’s purpose.”

Hicklin last saw her uncle at an event in 2019. “He was always extreme in his beliefs, and willing to sacrifice anything,” she says. “He was an incredibly principled human being.”