Magwaza Maphalala

Magwaza Alfred Maphalala (6 April 1948 – 5 February 2003) was a South African politician and trade unionist from KwaZulu-Natal. He represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the National Assembly from 1999 until his death in 2003. He was also a stalwart of the South African Communist Party (SACP) in KwaZulu-Natal.

Maphalala was active in the anti-apartheid movement in Durban as an underground member of the SACP and ANC. He served as general secretary of the National Federation of Workers (NFW) from 1983, and from 1986 to 1990, he worked in exile at the headquarters of the South African Congress of Trade Unions (SACTU). He was provincial secretary of the SACP in KwaZulu-Natal from 1995 to 1998 and then served on the party's provincial executive committee from 1998 until his death.

Early life Maphalala was born on 6 April 1948 in Bergville in the former Natal Province. An only child, he completed high school in Bergville before moving to Durban to find work.

Union activism He joined the trade union movement in the aftermath of the 1973 Durban strikes, and during the same period he was recruited into the underground of the ANC and SACP, which at the time were illegal anti-apartheid organisations. In his SACTU work, he reported to Moses Mabhida, who was exiled abroad, and he represented SACTU at the International Labour Organisation and other international forums. where he served until his death.

Personal life and death Maphalala was married to Nombuso Maphalala and had five children. He died on 5 February 2003 in Cape Town after a short illness. A regional branch of the SACP in southern eThekwini is also named after him.