[Woestynryer]

Cape Town - Anton Rupert was a patriotic South African with a flair for business which helped put South Africa on the international stage, says Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi.

"His entrepreneurial spirit was combined in equal measure with a generous philanthropic disposition. He also made a magnificent contribution to the arts.

"Even greater was his determination to oppose apartheid in principle and aid all those, including myself, who were actively involved in the struggle (against) the inhumane system.

"I was proud to call Dr Rupert a friend. He was always a wonderful source of support and kindness," said Buthelezi.

Rupert was a great South African who made an enormous contribution to the economy, former president FW de Klerk said on Thursday.

"Dr Rupert was a truly great business leader. He made an enormous contribution to the South African economy and proved that South Africans could also compete successfully in the international arena.

"Dr Rupert was a great South African - who consistently based his approach to relationships and politics on his philosophy of partnership."

Rupert, 89, died in his sleep at his Stellenbosch home on Wednesday night.

De Klerk said Rupert was a visionary innovator who often set the pace in marketing and business - not only in South Africa but throughout the world.

Rupert had also made an enormous contribution to the arts and to the preservation of South Africa's cultural and architectural heritage.

"He was at the forefront of global efforts to conserve wildlife and our natural environment," de Klerk said.

"I found him inspiring and greatly valued the constant support that he gave to our efforts to bring about the constitutional transformation of South Africa."

The Solidarity trade union said Rupert would be remembered for his role in the economic prosperity of the country as a whole.

The union's general secretary, Flip Buys, said Rupert had through hard work and ingenuity, created prosperity in an impoverished community, not just for himself but for many people around him.

"He belonged to a generation of business leaders who helped their own communities to pull themselves out of the morass of poverty by their own bootstraps," Buys said.