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| Nelson Mandela |
Former South African President Nelson Mandela, who battled apartheid and served as the first black president elected to office in his country from 1994-1999, has died. He was 95. Mandela was hospitalised June 8 for a lung infection following a history of recurring health issues, and his family began gathering at his Johannesburg home earlier today. South African president Jacob Zuma made the announcement just now in a national address.
Imprisoned in 1962, Mandela spent 27 years as a political prisoner in his own country before his 1990 release and subsequently led the charge to end apartheid with the African National Congress. His fight made him an international symbol for peace and progress, earning him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993, and he became a pop culture icon that resulted in everything from feature film and TV movies about him to mass-produced T-shirts and close ties with high-profile figures from Bill Clinton to Bono. The most recent film based on his life is the Weinstein Co’s Idris Elba-starring Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom, which is based on Mandela’s autobiography. It premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in September, opened in theaters November 29 and is getting awards-season buzz.
Former South African leader Nelson Mandela, known as “Madiba” to many, has died on Thursday, said President Jacob Zuma. Zuma made an announcement on Thursday, reported The Associated Press.
“Our beloved Nelson Mandela, the founding president of our democratic nation, has departed. He passed peacefully,” Zuma wrote on Twitter.
“He is now resting. He is now at peace,” he said, adding that “our nation has lost its greatest son. Our people have lost a father.”
Photos uploaded to Twitter showed a massive media presence outside the home in Houghton on Thursday evening. The road outside the home was closed to traffic and police were patrolling.
According to NBC, a tribal elder was seen at the home, while emergency vehicles were spotted outside.
The Daily Telegraph reported that his two granddaughters and friend Bantu Holomisa were seen entering the home on Wednesday night. “Things are quite gloomy,” an unnamed family friend was quoted as saying.
Makaziwe, his eldest daughter, told the paper that Mandela is on his “deathbed” earlier this week.
“Even when there are moments when you can see he’s struggling, but the fighting spirit is still there with him,” she was quoted as saying.
Makaziwe told the BBC: “Even for a lack of a better word… on his deathbed he is teaching us lessons – lessons in patience, in love, lessons of tolerance.”
Mandela is a respected figure around the world for his fight against racism in South Africa during the apartheid era. He spent 27 years in prison but was later elected as South Africa’s first black president. In South Africa, he is often referred to by his Xhosa clan name of Madiba, or sometimes “Tata,” which means father.
Since September, the 95-year-old statesman has been receiving around-the-clock care at his house after he was discharged from the hospital. There were similar rumors spread about his death on social media sites earlier this year.
Grandson Ndaba also said that he is ”not doing well at home in bed,”reported News Ltd. But his daughter, Zindzi, told the Telegraph in London that Mandela is “fine” but is in “frail” health.
On Twitter, the rumors were flying before an official announcement was made.
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