Merebank NIC struggle stalwart dies

Durban -

Rungasamy Gopaul “RG” Pillay, a pioneer of the Natal Indian Congress, who has been described as an unsung hero and the voice of the Merebank community in the late 1950s, has died.

Close friend and family member, Lava Moodley, said Pillay, who was 88, had dedicated his life to the struggle against apartheid.

“He was a true champion and an absolute struggle stalwart. I remember RG when I was a little kid aged six and he used to make me deliver the New Age newspaper – the paper used by the ANC at the time to inform people of the struggle,” said Moodley.

“I was under age so there was no way I could be arrested. RG formed an exceptional alliance with the people of Merebank and made them aware of politics. He was the man who spoke for them and united the people.”

Moodley said Pillay had been strongly influenced in his younger years by the ANC.

He started his activism in Bellair with the late Dr JN Reddy. During the late 1940s Pillay started an underground movement and he had strong ties with Billy Nair, Sam Pillay and Emmanuel Isaacs.

Moodley recalled how in 1959 Pillay’s house was surrounded by police when they came to arrest him.

He was held in Durban Central Prison for 90 days and during this period his family suffered some tough times.

“After he was released, it was not long before the police were after him again. It was the era leading up to the Rivonia Trial, and the police were keen on sweeping out all political activists. I remember once how he hid in the cabbage fields of Wentworth to evade them. He was eventually apprehended and within six months he was rearrested, after which he spent another 180 days in prison,” Moodley said.

Another close friend and confidant, Kay Moonsamy, said Pillay recruited a staggering 34 000 members for the NIC during the mid-1940s.

His funeral takes place today at 2pm at the Merebank Community Hall.