Vause Raw
Vause Raw, Durban Point, Durban, Natal | |
---|---|
In office 1958–1987 | |
Preceded by | Vernon Shearer |
Leader of the New Republic Party | |
In office 1977–1984 | |
Succeeded by | Sutton, B |
Personal details | |
Born | Wyatt Vause Raw 21 September 1921 Natal, Union of South Africa |
Died | 13 March 2001 Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa | (aged 79)
Political party | United Party New Republic Party |
Spouse | Barbara Airelle Giles |
Wyatt Vause Raw, DMS (21 September 1921 – 13 March 2001) was a conservative opposition South African politician of the Apartheid era. He was a prominent member of the United Party from the 1940s to the late 1970s, and the leader of the succeeding New Republic Party (NRP).[1]
Early life
Raw was born in
He joined his father in a farming and trading venture from 1946 to 1950, served as secretary to the Pretoria District Farmers' Union, and was appointed a director of the Waterberg Farmers' Co-operative. In 1954, he became sales manager of a textile knitting mill, and from 1956 to 1981 ran his own textile and clothing machinery agency.[2]
Politics
Raw was known for his support of ex-servicemen. He published Flares, a collection of war poems written during his military service.[2]
He was vice chairman of the
Helen Suzman characterised Raw as a "very right-wing United Party member", and identified him as one of the reasons she left the party.[2]
The United Party disbanded in 1977. Its successor, the NRP, elected Raw as national chairman in 1978,[1] and as its national leader later in the same year.[4] Raw discredited the party in a string of by-election defeats from 1977 to 1980, by making "extravagant" claims of support and predicting victory in areas where the party had no prospects.[5] He nevertheless continued in his capacity as leader until 1984.[citation needed]
He served for many years in the whites-only parliament as the Member of Parliament for Durban's Point constituency.[1][6] In 1985, he was awarded the Decoration for Meritorious Services; he was the first serving opposition MP to receive it. He was also a lifelong honorary colonel of 38 Field Workshop Regiment. He retired from Parliament just before the 1987 general election.[2]
Death
He died in March 2001 after a long illness.[1] Twice married, he was the father of seven children.[citation needed]
References
- ^ a b c d "Vause Raw dies after illness". The Dispatch. 14 March 2001. Archived from the original on 30 March 2002.
- ^ a b c d e f SAPA (13 March 2001). "Vause Raw dies". News24. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
- ^ Journal of African Studies, Volume 5, Issues 3-4, Heldref Publications, 1978
- ^ Mitchell, Thomas G. Indispensable traitors: Liberal Parties in Settler Conflicts, pp.21-22. Westport: Greenwood Press.
- OCLC 704472625.
- ^ "Politics in Dundee in the 1950s and 1960s". dundeenatal.com. 26 August 2007.
Further reading
- Lemon, Anthony (October 1982). "Issues and Campaigns in the South African General Election of 1981". African Affairs. 81 (325): 511–526. .