Bibi Dawood

Ayesha "Bibi" Dawood (31 January 1927 – 1 June 2014) was a South African anti-apartheid activist from Worcester. She was an organiser of the Defiance Campaign and later became a Treason Triallist, before in 1968 she was exiled to India for over two decades.

Life and activism Dawood was born on 31 January 1927 in Worcester in the Cape Province. Her father was an Indian merchant who had immigrated to South Africa in 1899; her mother was Malay from Calvinia. Her political involvement began in 1951 when she helped organise a strike against pass laws in Worcester on 7 May 1951. The success of the strike led to the formation of the Worcester United Action Committee, an anti-apartheid residents' association, and Dawood became its secretary.

In 1968, Dawood and her family were deported to India due to her husband's immigration status. She reportedly refused to collaborate with the apartheid government in exchange for the right to remain in South Africa.