DR ABDULLAH ABDURAHMAN, South Africa's first elected black politician

218pp., illus., paperback, Johannesburg, 2020

Abdullah Abdurahman (1872-1940) was the first person of colour to be elected to political office in South Africa. Born in Wellington, he trained as a medical doctor in Scotland and set up a practice in Cape Town. In 1904 he was elected as a Cape Town city councillor, a position he held almost uninterrupted until his death. He was also President of the African Political Organisation, the leading coloured political party at the time, from 1905-1940.

Martin Plaut is currently Senior Research Fellow at the University of London. He joined the BBC as a journalist in 1984 and reported extensively from Africa before retiring as African Editor, BBC World News Service, in 2013.