Arthur Goldreich
Arthur Goldreich (* 1929 in Johannesburg , then South African Union ; † May 24, 2011 in Herzliya , Israel ) was a South African painter, opponent of apartheid , Israeli professor of design and critic of Israel's policy towards the Palestinians .
Life
As a young man, Goldreich went to the British Mandate of Palestine after the Second World War and took part in the Palestine War as a Jew . He was a member of the Palmach , the elite unit of the Jewish military organization Hagana .
In 1952 Goldreich returned to South Africa and devoted himself to painting. In 1955 he received the South African Best Young Painter Award for his paintings in black and white. However , he was already known to the apartheid regime as an opponent of the system. Together with Harold Wolpe , he bought the Liliesleaf Farm in Rivonia near Johannesburg from funds from the South African Communist Party . This homestead became a haven for members of the African National Congress (ANC). At the same time Goldreich spied on places where the ANC Umkhonto we Sizwe military organization could carry out acts of sabotage. He also established rules for the organization and discipline of the guerrillas. Goldreich was also the contact person for the representatives of anti-apartheid activities within the ethnic group of Indian origin .
After Goldreich was arrested at Liliesleaf Farm together with a large number of the leaders of the ANC and imprisoned in Marshall Square Prison in Johannesburg, he succeeded on August 11, 1963 together with Wolpe, who was a wanted communist on the Bechuanaland border - that later Botswana - was arrested, and Mosie Moola and Abdulhay (Charlie) Jassat of the Natal Indian Congress escaped from Marshall Square Prison by bribing a prison guard. Goldreich hid, disguised as a priest, in Johannesburg and the surrounding area and later in Swaziland , which was then still a British protectorate, before he could fly out to Bechuanaland. This escape came about two months before the Rivonia Trial in Pretoria was due to begin.
On August 28, 1963, Wolpe and Goldreich arrived at Francistown in Bechuanaland. The press reported on the spectacular escape on the same day, to which Justice Minister Vorster declared: "They were our fattest fish".
They later both flew to London, where they met their families. Moola later became the ANC representative for Asia and was stationed in New Delhi , India .
Life in Israel
Goldreich continued his artistic career in Israel. He became a leading contributor to the establishment of the Jerusalem Art Academy Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design . In 1966 he became head of the department for industrial design and environmental issues, which is now internationally known as the center for design.
During the last phase of his life in Israel, Goldreich propagated a new approach to Israeli policy towards the Palestinians, away from the priority of land ownership towards a peaceful solution and coexistence. He described Israeli politics as racist.
literature
- JA Kalley, E. Schoeman, LE Andor (Eds.): Southern African Political History: a Chronology of Key Political Events from Independence to mid-1997. Greenwood, Westport 1999
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ruth First : Captive Courage. 117 days in a South African prison. Frankfurt am Main 1991, p. 29
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Goldreich, Arthur |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Israeli painter and professor of design |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1929 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Johannesburg , South African Union |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 24, 2011 |
| Place of death | Herzliya , Israel |