The Ahmed Kathrada Foundation (AKF) on Friday paid tribute to anti-apartheid stalwart Shanthie Naidoo Tweedie (91) following her passing on Thursday, highlighting her extraordinary courage during 371 days in solitary confinement.

The foundation described Naidoo Tweedie’s “extraordinary legacy”, declaring her passing as the "end of an era". It said it was honouring a life “defined by quiet dignity, fierce resilience, and an unshakeable commitment to justice”.

The AKF extended its condolences to her husband Dominic Tweedie, as well as the Naidoo and Pillay families.

“Shanthie taught us that while the body can be locked away, a principled soul can never be imprisoned," the AKF stated. "May her long-awaited rest be peaceful, and may her name forever be spoken with the reverence, honour, and love she so richly deserves.”

Born in Pretoria in 1935, Naidoo Tweedie spent much of her youth resisting the oppressive laws of the apartheid regime.

During this time, she worked with the Transvaal Indian Youth Congress and the Federation of South African Women, or FEDSAW, leading protests, organising community boycotts, and distributing anti-apartheid literature across Gauteng.

In 1969, she was held in solitary confinement by the apartheid police under the brutal Terrorism Act.

The notorious Security Branch subjected her to extreme sleep deprivation and severe torture, while the State sought to pressure her into becoming a star witness in the infamous Trial of 22.

Facing indefinite imprisonment, Naidoo Tweedie refused to testify against her friend, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, and the other co-accused activists.

As a result, she was kept in brutal detention for 371 days.

Later, Madikizela-Mandela would express her love and respect for her fellow freedom fighter.

For years, the apartheid government denied Naidoo Tweedie an exit permit to go into exile. AKF said it took immense international pressure and the direct intervention of liberal MP Helen Suzman before Naidoo Tweedie was finally permitted to leave South Africa in September 1972.

Though she was stripped of her citizenship and barred from returning to South Africa, her departure from Jan Smuts Airport became a powerful act of defiance, the foundation stated.

She returned to South Africa with her husband in 1991.

In 1997, Naidoo Tweedie and her siblings stood before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to testify against the systematic cruelty of the apartheid State. 

President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed sadness following Naidoo Tweedie's passing, noting that her death "causes us to revisit and pay tribute to the extraordinary contribution she made to our struggle for freedom.”

The President described Naidoo Tweedie as a hero who followed closely in the footsteps of her politically active family, sacrificing her extended life to fight for a free, non-racial South Africa.

Ramaphosa emphasised the "profound timing of her death", noting the powerful link to the country's history of gender-based activism.

“Her passing, on the eve of Women’s Month, draws our attention to the struggles women faced under apartheid and which spurred courageous women to confront a system founded on race and gender discrimination,” he stated.

The President added that as the country mourns, it must also celebrate Naidoo Tweedie's legacy, as well as that of the 20 000 women who marched to the Union Buildings 70 years ago, and other women who have fought to make South Africa a better place for women and girls.

“We can only repay Shanthie Naidoo Tweedie by honouring her sacrifice and leadership, and continuing to make South Africa a nation that works for all, and especially women,” Ramaphosa said.