Playwright Gibson Kentedies at 72

South African playwright Gibson Kente, lauded for fighting the stigma of Aids by publicly announcing he was HIV-positive, has died, relatives said. He was 72.

Kente was among the first to write about the township realities of crime, hooliganism, alcoholism, love and politics. His plays included Manana, The Jazz Prophet, How Long and Sikhalo.

Called a "living treasure" by the National Arts Council, Kente died in his sleep early Sunday at his home in Soweto, his cousin Nomathemba Kela told the South African Press Association.

"He was a very strong person, a role model for many artists," Kela was quoted as saying.

"He had a positive attitude towards others and fought a very brave fight for a long time."

Kente, who produced some 23 plays and three television dramas between 1963 and 1992, began his career with Union Artists, a black theatre group based in Johannesburg.

He produced his first play, Manana, The Jazz Prophet, for township audiences.

His second play, Sikalo in 1966, blended African gospel and township jazz, playing for multiracial audiences and becoming a huge success in the townships.

Kente then broke from Union Artists and launched his own "township theatre," galvanised by black urbanisation and the restrictions placed on blacks under apartheid laws like the Group Areas Act.

Township theatre was entertainment for the black working classes, performed in churches, schools and community centres. Theatre groups often closed due to harassment from apartheid authorities, especially when production took on a political theme.

Kente's musicals are said to have inspired a generation of artists, including Peter Se-puma, Sello Maake Ka Ncube, Mbongeni Ngema, Nomsa Nene and the late Brenda Fassie. He also trained an estimated 400 artists in theatre.

Kente "will be remembered forever as the greatest theatre innovator in the county," Ngema told The Star, a Johannesburg daily.

Despite threats from apartheid authorities and bans on some of his work, he three anti-apartheid plays in 1974-76 How Long, I Believe and Too Late.

He was detained in 1976 for attempting to film How Long, and released in 1977.

Kente was praised by Aids activists and politicians, including former President Nelson Mandela, when he announced in late 2003 that he was HIV-positive.

"Trust me to be strong, because I want to stand out as a paragon of strength," Kente told reporters when he announced his HIV-positive status.