Dimitri Tsafendas

Dimitri Tsafendas mugshot

Dimitri Tsafendas (14 January 1918 – 7 October 1999) was a Greek-South African who is best known for assassinating Hendrik Verwoerd, the Prime Minister of South Africa and the architect of apartheid, on 6 September 1966. Tsafendas stabbed Verwoerd to death in the Parliament of South Africa in Cape Town. His act was a pivotal moment in South African history, highlighting the extreme tensions and divisions caused by the apartheid regime.

Early Life

Dimitri Tsafendas was born in Lourenço Marques, Mozambique (now Maputo), to a Greek father and a Mozambican mother of mixed race. His mixed heritage meant he was classified under the apartheid regime's racial categories as neither white nor black, which had a profound impact on his life and identity. Tsafendas spent much of his early life at sea, working as a merchant seaman, which exposed him to various political ideologies and the injustices faced by people around the world, particularly those under colonial rule.

Assassination of Hendrik Verwoerd

On 6 September 1966, Tsafendas entered the Parliament of South Africa armed with a knife. He approached Verwoerd while the latter was sitting in the assembly and stabbed him four times, leading to Verwoerd's death. Tsafendas was immediately arrested and later claimed that a giant tapeworm inside him had instructed him to kill Verwoerd. This claim led to questions about his mental health.

Trial and Imprisonment

During his trial, Tsafendas was found unfit to stand trial due to his mental state and was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Instead of being sent to prison, he was detained at the maximum security section of Pretoria Central Prison, and later transferred to a psychiatric hospital. Tsafendas spent the rest of his life in various forms of custody, often under harsh conditions. Despite his significant act, he remained a largely forgotten figure in South African history, with the apartheid government and later governments showing little interest in revisiting his case or condition.

Legacy

The assassination of Hendrik Verwoerd by Dimitri Tsafendas is a complex event in South African history. For some, Tsafendas is seen as a hero who took a stand against the oppressive apartheid regime. For others, he is viewed through the lens of his mental illness, with the assassination seen as the act of a disturbed individual rather than a political martyr. In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in Tsafendas's life and actions, with scholars and activists arguing that his motivations were political and that he should be recognized as an opponent of apartheid.

Death

Dimitri Tsafendas died on 7 October 1999 in a psychiatric institution in South Africa. His death marked the end of a life that had been deeply affected by the racial and political divisions of his time.