M. J. Naidoo

Mooroogiah Jayarajapathy Naidoo (1931–1997) was a South African Indian anti-apartheid activist and lawyer. Commonly known as "MJ", Naidoo played an active role in the re-launched Natal Indian Congress (NIC) in October 1971. Under his leadership, the NIC contributed towards what has been dubbed the "Durban Moment", when, in a east coast harbour city, a variety of activists from different ideological positions, joined forces against apartheid, oppression and exploitation. In January 1973, over 100 000 factory and dock workers began a mass action campaign, which was supported by student protest and community based activism. Rick Turner described this as a grassroots shift in liberation perceptions, and Steve Biko suggested that if you are oppressed, then you are black. A decade later, M.J. Naidoo would again be in the news, as part of the Durban Six and a defendant in the Pietermaritzburg Treason Trial. M.J. died in 1997, aged 66.