While in exile , his brother Jama Mbeki , a supporter of the rival Pan Africanist Congress , was killed by agents of the Lesotho government in 1982 while attempting to assist the Lesotho Liberation Army . His son Kwanda , the product of a liaison in Mbeki 's teenage years , was killed while trying to leave South Africa to join his father . When Mbeki finally was able to return home to South Africa and was reunited with his own father , the elder Mbeki told a reporter , " You must remember that Thabo Mbeki is no longer my son . He is my comrade ! " A news article pointed out that this was an expression of pride , explaining , " For Govan Mbeki , a son was a mere biological appendage ; to be called a comrade , on the other hand , was the highest honour . " Mbeki devoted his life to the ANC and during his years in exile was given increased responsibility . Following the 1976 Soweto riots – a student uprising in the township outside Johannesburg – he initiated a regular radio broadcast from Lusaka , tying ANC followers inside the country to their exiled leaders . Encouraging activists to keep up the pressure on the apartheid regime was a key component in the ANC 's campaign to liberate their country . In the late 1970s , Mbeki made a number of trips to the United States in search of support among US corporations . Literate and funny , he made a wide circle of friends in New York City . Mbeki was appointed head of the ANC 's information department in 1984 and then became head of the international department in 1989 , reporting directly to Oliver Tambo , then President of the ANC . Tambo was Mbeki 's long-time mentor
1976 Soweto riots
Soweto uprising
Thabo Mbeki