James (Jimmy) Thomas Kruger

James ‘’Jimmy’’ Thomas Kruger, 69, political leader of South Africa and enforcer of apartheid, passed away on May 9th, 1987 in Irene.
He was born in Wales in 1917 and adopted by Afrikaner parents. He rose to the position of Minister of Justice in 1974 and was responsible for Steve Biko´s death, a well-known anti-apartheid activist who was murdered by apartheid enforcers. Kruger was one of the people who tried to make Biko´s death appear as suicide, as all black peoples´ deaths under police custody were called.’’We are doing absolutely everything to try to prevent people from committing suicide,” Kruger said in 1978. ”But you can understand that if a man wants to commit suicide it is very difficult to prevent it.’’ Kruger was also known for stating that Biko´s death ´´leaves him cold´´.
James Kruger was very strict about the visibility of opinions that were different or against his own theories. When Donald Woods, a South African journalist, published an article stating that Kruger should resign, Woods immediately got banned and  fled from South Africa with his family. Kruger was responsible for multiple mass arrests and closing schools, since he saw allowing students to have a mutual place to meet as a threat to the government.
When the South African government eventually began investigating Steve Biko´s death, they confirmed that it was in fact caused by violence that lead to brain damage. This resulted to Kruger retiring from politics in 1980. He spent the rest of his life near his home town and passed away after recently undergoing heart surgery.

James Thomas Kruger is survived by his wife Susan Kruger, a novelist, and their two sons.