COOLIE JOURNALIST, autobiography of veteran struggle journalist Marimuthu Subramoney (Subry Govender)

218pp., illus., paperback, Micromega Publications, Durban, 2026

ISBN: 9781049232058

Marimuthu Subramoney, also known as 'Subry Govender', was born in 1946 in Cato Manor. After completing his school education he worked as a clerk for an insurance company, and wrote sport and community news articles for the Daily News and the Golden City POST. He joined the Daily News as a full-time journalist in 1973, while also working as a foreign correspondent for various international radio stations.

His articles on non-racial sport and apartheid politics attracted the attention of the security police and he was subjected to ongoing harassment and intimidation. In December 1980 he was banned and placed under house arrest for three years, during which time he established the independent news agency, the Press Trust of South Africa. When the banning order was lifted he returned to working as a foreign correspondent for international radio stations and was the BBC's official correspondent in South Africa from 1983 to 1994. From 1994 until his retirement in 2010 he served as senior political correspondent for the SABC. He continued working as foreign correspondent for international media outlets until 2023.