/ 6 May 2010

Van Zyl Slabbert hospitalised

There will be no updates on the condition of former opposition leader Frederik van Zyl Slabbert, a spokesperson for Johannesburg’s Milpark hospital said on Thursday.

Slabbert has been admitted to the hospital, reportedly with a serious liver illness.

“The family has asked us not to comment on his condition,” said hospital spokesperson Erin Smiley.

“I can’t give any information about him.”

Earlier, Beeld newspaper reported her as saying on Wednesday that he was in a stable condition, but added it understood he was slipping in and out of consciousness.

Van Zyl Slabbert (70) retired as chancellor of the University of Stellenbosch last year following a heart attack. He was also fitted with a pacemaker.

He was leader of the opposition in the apartheid-era House of Assembly for seven years. – Sapa