Foundation for Human Rights, South Africa

The FHR offers its condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Oupa Lehulere upon his passing today.

Oupa’s first introduction to resistance politics came with the protests surrounding the introduction of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction in schools in 1975 where he was a scholar in Gugulethu, Cape Town. It was in 1976 with the students’ uprising that he personally became politically active.

Oupa was a Director at Khanya College, an independent non-governmental organisation based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Established in 1986, the primary aim of Khanya College is to assist various constituencies within working class and poor communities to respond to the challenges posed by the forces of economic and political globalisation.

Oupa Lehulere is famously known for his activism, political analyses and various scholarly articles . Oupa will be remembered by his family and friends for his being a mentor and political leader for many young people. His commitment to fighting for the rights of the marginalised never diminished throughout his life. We have lost a champion in the fight for a decent life for the marginalised and exploited. He leaves a legacy that will loom large for many generations.

Our deepest condolences to his partner, Maria and his daughter Searatoa.