The African National Congress (ANC) has welcomed the court ruling establishing that Chief Albert Luthuli was brutally beaten to death by the apartheid police in 1967.

Luthuli, a teacher, traditional leader and freedom fighter, served as President-General of the ANC from 1952 until his passing in 1967.

He led the ANC during the Defiance Campaign, the drafting of the Freedom Charter, and the banning of the ANC.

The inquest into Luthuli’s death was reopened earlier this year.

The ANC said the Pietermaritzburg High Court ruling corrected a “long-standing distortion of history” by overturning the apartheid-era inquest that claimed Luthuli died after being struck by a goods train.

“The Court, presided over by Judge Nompumelelo Hadebe, affirmed that both oral and documentary evidence presented in the reopened inquest do not support those discredited findings,” said ANC national spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu.

Bhengu said the ruling brought justice, truth and dignity to Luthuli’s memory and to all those who suffered under apartheid brutality.

She further stated that the judgment reaffirmed what the party, the liberation movement, and the oppressed people of South Africa had always known; that Luthuli was a victim of State-sanctioned murder.

“…it is a moral victory not only for his family but for all martyrs of our struggle whose lives were cut short by the cruelty of apartheid,” she stated.

Luthuli became the first African recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1960 for his non-violent resistance against apartheid.

“Under his leadership, the ANC deepened its commitment to unity, democracy and the vision of a non-racial, non-sexist South Africa. He stood firmly for the principle that ‘the road to freedom is via the cross’, reminding generations of activists that the struggle for liberation demands sacrifice and integrity,” she said.

The ANC commended the efforts of all those who fought to reopen this inquest; historians, human rights lawyers, the Luthuli family, and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.

“The ruling restores historical integrity and strengthens our nation’s collective memory… His spirit continues to guide our journey of national renewal and social transformation.

“The ANC calls on all South Africans to reflect on this moment as a reminder of the sacrifices made for our democracy, and to rededicate ourselves to the ongoing task of building a just, united and prosperous South Africa,” said Bhengu.