Obituaries

Paul Theron was born in Cape Town in 1946. His second name is after a Second World War general whom his father admired. He grew up in Rondebosch and attended Rondebosch Boys Preparatory and High Schools, where he developed a number of close friends, read widely, and excelled academically. He matriculated with an ’Á’ aggregate, after which he was ‘called up’ to do military service.

Towards the end of his military service Paul contracted hepatitis, and during his convalescence resolved to become a medical doctor. In 1966 he was admitted to medical school at the University of Cape Town, where he won the Zwarenstein prize as the best first year student. Two years later he joined protests against the apartheid government’s decision prevent an African lecturer joining the university staff, and became involved in student politics. He was elected to the SRC, and the following year became its President. He also won an Abe Bailey Scholarship.

The award of a Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford University was to be a turning point in his life, although not in a way he had hoped it would be. To take up the scholarship, he had to interrupt his medical studies. Isolated from family and friends, he had a ‘breakdown’ and returned to South Africa. This was doubtless a bitter disappointment. No less bitter was the realization that the breakdown signified a disability which his profession has labelled as ‘mentally illness’.

Paul was to display considerable courage in coming to come to terms with this disability, and building a professional career despite it, as well leading a full and productive life. On his return to Cape Town he did a B.Sc degree before completing his medical studies, and moving to Port Elizabeth, where he taught at the university before taking up a position at Livingstone Hospital. He then spent some six years in England, most of which as a general practitioner in Ipswich, and married Rhona, the mother of Danielle and Jessica. He returned with them in 1985 to start a general practice in Wynberg.

It is for his work in the public sector, however, that Paul will be remembered most.  While in general practice at Wynberg he accepted a position as a district surgeon. His duties included sessions at Pollsmoor prison, and he worked there altogether 22 years, later becoming senior medical practioner at the prison’s Medium A section. Appalled by the unacceptable standard of health care, Paul made repeated efforts to get the Department of Correctional Services to address the situation. For his troubles, he was suspended in 2007.

“Dr Paul Theron should be publicly commended for the many years of devoted health care service he has given to prisoners at Pollsmoor Prison” wrote Solly Benatar, who was at the time professor of medical ethics. “he has distinguished himself as a doctor with integrity and admirable human values. In any decent nation his work and his courage in reporting deteriorating conditions….would be rewarded with a medal of distinguished national service.” (Cape Times, 4 October 2007)

Paul challenged the lawfulness of his suspension, in one of the first cases brought under a recently introduced law to protect whistle-blowers. Although he did not return to Pollsmoor, he was reinstated by the Department of Health, and reinvented himself as a ‘clinical forensic practioner’. He was also vindicated, in case brought by a former Pollsmoor prisoner in which Paul gave evidence, which went all the way to the Constitutional Court (Lee v Minister of Correctional Services). He is survived by Margaretha, who he married in 1993, Danielle and Jessica, and grandchildren Mikaela and Beth.

Fanie was one of South Africa’s top commercial lawyers for decades and he was the most senior silk at the Johannesburg Bar‚ having earned silk status in June 1976. His areas of expertise were commercial law, competition law, intellectual property and patent law. Read more here.

One of South Africa’s greatest all-round sportsmen who represented and captained South Africa at cricket and remembered equally for the role he played in trying to create a just society for all in South Africa. He was also a top-order batsman, leg-spin bowler and brilliant fielder, he was one of several young players to be capped on the tour to England in 1951 and in all he played in 19 Test matches against England, New Zealand and Australia being captain in four matches each against England and Australia in the 1956/57 and 1957/58 seasons. In the late 1950s, he built up his own legal practice and in addition became one of the founding members of the Progressive Party under the inspired leadership of the legendary Helen Suzman and also served a term in Parliament, representing one of the East London constituencies. As a lawyer he assisted Basil d’Oliveira and other similarly disadvantaged sportsmen with their contracts that enabled them to fulfil the professional careers as sportsmen they had been denied in South Africa. Please also read his obituary in The Telegraph.

Pat was born in 1928 and came up as a Rhodes Scholar in 1948 to read a DPhil in International Law and Legal Studies. After Oxford, he volunteered in the U.S Air Force and spent two years on active duty, chiefly in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, as a legal officer in the United States Mission to Saudi Arabia. After his service, he joined the law firm now known as Baker Botts LLP. When he retired he taught transnational business law as a Visiting Professor at UT Law (1993–1997) and as a Distinguished Lecturer (1996–2006) and an Adjunct Professor (2007–2015) at the University of Houston Law Center.

Stansfield was a Navy admiral and Rhodes Scholar who was Director of Central Intelligence under President Jimmy Carter. He graduated from Oxford in 1949 with a PPE degree.

Read more here.

Derek was a passionate and brilliant biomedical scientist and clinician. He made many important discoveries upon which he built a compelling vision for immune therapies based on dendritic cells as novel therapeutics for solid and liquid cancers, immunosuppression, and for controlling graft vs host disease. He worked in Christchurch, Brisbane and Sydney and established the Dendritic Cell Research group which became a support for many scientists at Concord, Westmead and RPA hospitals.

Tom worked at the College of Idaho and inspired many young students to apply for the Rhodes Scholarships. He graduate from Oxford in 1970 with an MLitt in Philosophy. Read more here.

Professor Kaul completed his doctoral studies at Yale. Prof. Kaul taught first at Zakir Hussain College, University of Delhi, and then joined the Department of English, University of Delhi, where he continued until his retirement in 1992. Prof. Kaul also served as Associate Professor at Yale and as Visiting Professor at Oberlin College in the United States. Professor Kaul conceptualised and actualised the M Phil programme in the Department of English, based on graduate seminars, peer-group discussions, and rigorous writing and research. He was also an iconic teacher at the Master's level. His Ph.D supervisees remember him with respect, affection and admiration. 

Michael had a distinguished career in teaching university Physics and his research area was in theoretical solid-state physics. In 1977, he won the Herzberg Medal for outstanding research by a Canadian physicist under 40.