REST IN PEACE OUR BELOVED MADIBA!
NELSON ROLIHLAHLA MANDELA
1918 – 2013
BY SHEETAL SCHNEIDER CROSS
The world is grieving at the loss of one of its greatest leader, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. The former South African president is internationally known for his activism and role in helping to eradicate the apartheid regime in the country, after his incarceration.
Mandela, who is also called Madiba, had been central in negotiations with then president, Frederik Willem de Klerk, prior to the 1994 democratic elections of South Africa. In an interview with the news network CNN, de Klerk said: “The world has lost a great unifier”, referring to the death of the honourable Nelson Mandela.
Image source: BBC News
World leaders and 52 Presidents including current US President Barack Obama and current UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, attended the Nelson Mandela Memorial held at the FNB Soccer Stadium in Soweto, Johannesburg yesterday 10th December 2014.
South African dignitaries and current South African President, Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma, paid tribute to the great Madiba and mourned with the nation.
Since the passing of Madiba on the 5th December this year, following his depreciating health conditions, smaller ceremonies, church services and other gatherings have been held nationally. There has also been other global gestures to remember Madiba, with message book signings at Embassies and African countries hosting sites where people may grieve and offer flowers, pictures and support.
Although the South African Rand has enjoyed an increase in value with an influx of mourners streaming into the country, no cost has been estimated by the government for the State funeral being held on Sunday 15th December 2013, at Qunu in the Eastern Cape.
Several major sports events will be starting a day early, to avoid clashes with what is being dubbed, “the biggest and most significant funeral in history”.
Celebrities, athletes, politicians, local and international heads of state, members of the public and South Africans have been broadcasting messages of grief since the news broke. Social media platforms are streaming with images and updates, as people make their way to memorial sites and events honouring the late Madiba.
The South African government have restricted mourners to view the body of the esteemed Madiba once only, stating that there is an expected crowd of thousands, which will make it difficult for people to pay their respects in length. Officials also stated that an ink, similar to the one used during voting, will be used to mark the finger of each mourner, as they pass the body and are then led to an exit. Officials have also stated that no cell phones or recording devices will be allowed at the funeral and strictly no photos of the procession will be allowed by the public.
The funeral will be globally televised and recorded across every conceivable communication platform, as myriads of foreign and local media document this historical event in various languages.