THE daughter of assassinated South African communist leader Chris Hani died on Saturday of a suspected asthma attack, Sunday newspapers reported. Nomakhwezi Hani, 22, was the second of the leader’s three daughters and was present when he was assassinated by rightwingers in 1993. She was found dead on Saturday morning by a friend whose Johannesburg home she was staying at overnight, The Sunday Times reported. Dr. Malefetsane Ngatane, representative and doctor for the Hani family, told the newspaper it appeared she had died of an asthma attack and had experienced breathing difficulties on Friday night. Nomakhwezi Hani was with her father when he was gunned down in his driveway by Polish immigrant Janusz Walus. Walus and Conservative Party leader Clive Derby-Lewis were convicted of the murder. The death of the popular South African Communist Party leader threatened to derail negotiations for the country’s transition to democratic rule until then President F.W. de Klerk announced the April 27, 1994 date for all-race elections. – Reuters