Character Analysis
Captain (nee Lieutenant) Smit is the boxing coach at the Barberton prison and a pretty good guy overall. Even though he's afflicted by the racism that's central to the system, he does come around to see Geel Piet as a real human being.
Klipkop, the assistant coach, takes good care of Peekay, too, but is less understanding of Geel Piet. He is representative of the people who assent to and participate in racism without even thinking about it.
The kommandant is nice to Peekay and Doc because he is an Afrikaner who wants to stick it to the English people who put Doc in jail in the first place. He also takes the credit for prison reform when Peekay and Mrs. Boxall organize the letter-writing campaign and Doc gives his concert.
When Geel Piet dies, Gert and Smit take care of Peekay. Smit tells him, "'Shhhh. I will avenge you, this I promise. Don't cry, champ, don't cry, little boetie'" (14.52). He does so by beating up Borman (with the help of Klipkop) in front of everyone on the boxing team, and getting him to admit that he was the one that killed Geel Piet.