Sazman, Helen

She was born in a family of Jewish immigrants Frieda David (from Goldingen of the Province of Courland ) and Samuel Gavronsky (from Klikoli of the Kovno province ) ^[1] . She studied economics at the University of Witwatersrand . At twenty, she married Moses Sazman, who was much older than her and gave birth to two daughters. Her niece, Janet Sazman , became a famous actress in England . In 1944 she began teaching at the university. In 1953 she was elected to parliament from the opposition United Party , in 1959 she moved to the liberal Progressive Party (from 1961 to 1974 she was the only deputy from this party).

Sazman was one of the few white politicians who criticized the apartheid policy. For a long time, she was the only deputy who criticized the policies of the National Party . Subsequently, the opposition to apartheid in South Africa increased, and the Progressive Party merged with the Reform Party , and then with the liberal wing of the United Party, forming the Progressive Federal Party and consolidated its position in parliament. Helen Sazman ceased to be a deputy in 1989 .

As part of her own party, Helen Sazman often encountered her views with another active anti-apartheid activist, Harry Schwartz , who held right-wing positions on other issues, which is why the election debates of that time received the nickname “Helen and Harry Show”.

Sazman repeatedly visited Nelson Mandela in prison. Subsequently, she was present when he signed the new constitution of the country in 1996 .

Helen Sazman was an honorary doctor of 27 universities in different parts of the world. Her candidacy was twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize , and in 1989 the Queen of Great Britain Elizabeth II awarded her the Order of the British Empire , but Sazman did not receive a noble title, because South Africa was not a member of the Commonwealth at that time.

In the television project of 100 great South Africans, she was ranked 24th.