When the headboy tells you to get on the blog, you
get on the blog, so here I am, George.
After school I spent 1973 in Australia as a Rotary
exchange student in Coffs Harbour, New South Wales. I came back to Rhodes in
1974 and spent 6 years getting an honours degree in History and an LL.B. In 1974
and 1975 I played in a dance band, Abacus, with Peter Dalbock, M M Tarr and the
Bilsbury brothers. Had a lot of fun and made some pocket money, playing two
Christmas seasons at the Grand Hotel in Port Alfred, amongst other things. Also
played in subsequent bands with non-Graemians, including Rollercoaster and
Knocker's Bottle. Was President of the Rhodes SRC in 1978.
Spent 1980/81 in the army - not the greatest
soldier of all time, ending up in Grootfontein in Namibia as military law
advisor.
Have practised as an advocate in private practice
in Grahamstown since 1982. Had some interesting times, including a brief to
serve as a delegate at CODESA and the Multi-party Negotiating Forum when the
new constitutional system was being designed. I became involved in the
bar's advocacy skills training programme, and apart from training young South
African advocates over the past 15 years, I have taught on courses run by the
English bar at Oxford and Nottingham, and at a course for young practitioners in
Hong Kong. I am at present the vice-chairman of the General Council of the Bar
of South Africa, and a representative of the advocates' profession on the
Judicial Service Commission.
I married Debbie Boshoff, who ran her own
educational consultancy for about 15 years and for the past five years has been
running the communications department at Kingswood College. I have two sons,
Nicholas, who is doing a sound engineering diploma in Cape Town, to give vent to
his musical talents, which cover clarinet, drums and guitar, and Joshua, who is
in matric and was selected last year for the national schools' jazz band as a
trombonist.
I've been involved in Rotary, serving as President
of the Grahamstown Club in 1989/90 and charter president of the new Grahamstown
Sunset Club in 1999/2000. Have hosted 13 exchange students from other countries,
trying to pay back for the privilege I had in 1973 - my wife was also an
exchange student in 1980.
For the rest I live peacefully among the potholes
in Grahamstown, walk on the Mountain Drive as often as I can (those who haven't
been here over the past decade would not recognise it, Working for Water cut out
all the eucalypts and wattle some years ago), listen to Bob Dylan and Eric
Clapton and drink red wine. I also do a bit of writing about the constitution
and the law - had a piece published in the Business Day on 16
February which those who need a cure for insomnia can access on www.businessday.co.za under the title
"IZAK SMUTS: Zuma should look at what binds the arms of the state".
Particularly for those chaps who can't make the
reunion (the others will see what's up when they're here) I would urge you to
consider donating to the school. The management of the school has done an
extraordinary job in preserving standards and improving the facilities in
extremely adverse circumstances, given the machinations of the Eastern Cape
education department, and it is schools like Graeme that are going to make the
difference if South Africa is going to be a winning nation, rather than a failed
state. So do it!
Look forward to seeing the rest of you the week-end
after next.
The attached photo is of the Grahamstown Golden
Oldies cricket team at the national tournament in Bloemfontein two years ago -
I'm in the front row second from left behind the grey beard
camouflage
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