Syekh Yusuf al-Makassari

Abadin Tadia Tjoessoep (3 July 1626 – 23 May 1699 ), more commonly known as Sheikh Yusuf or Sheik Joseph, was an Indonesian Muslim of noble Makassar descent. He was also known as Muhammad Yusuf al-Maqassari or Tuanta Salamaka ri Gowa (Savior from Gowa). In 1693 he was exiled to the Cape of Good Hope, South Africa, which resulted in his establishing Islam in the Cape.

Early and middle life (Nusantara) Yusuf was born as nephew of the Sultan Alauddin of Gowa, in today Makassar, Indonesia. In 1644 he embarked on the Hajj to Mecca and spent several years in Arabia learning under various pious scholars, there he studied under Shattariyya sufi masters such as Ahmad al-Qushashi and the Kurdish Sunni Muslim scholar Ibrahim al-Kurani. During this period the Dutch and British East India Companies were fighting for control of the region due to its lucrative trade in spices and gold. When Yusuf left Arabia in 1664, Makassar had been captured by the Dutch, and he was unable to return home. Instead, he headed for Bantam on the island of Java, where he was welcomed by Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa. Ageng gave Yusuf the hand of one of his daughters in marriage, and made him his chief religious judge and personal advisor. Yusuf stayed in Bantam for 16 years until 1680, when Ageng's son, Pangeran Hajji, rose against his father, possibly at the urgings of the Dutch East India Company. Ageng rallied his forces, including Yusuf, and in 1683 besieged Hajji in his fortress at Soerdesoeang. Ageng was defeated but managed to escape capture, along with an entourage of about 5,000, among them the 57-year-old Yusuf. Ageng was captured later that year but Yusuf managed to escape a second time and continued the resistance. was received in the Cape on 2 April 1694 by governor Simon van der Stel. They were housed on the farm Zandvliet, far outside of Cape Town, in an attempt to minimise his influence on the DEIC's slaves. He was also posthumously awarded the Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo in Gold on 27 September 2005, for his contribution to the struggle against colonialism.

Order of Mendi for Bravery (2005)