Condolence Messages for Nelson Mandela

by cyberviews

- on 12/09/2013

In the aftermath of the passing away of one of the worlds greatest statesmen and Nobel la reate! Nelson "andela! it was most intrig ing to read the condolence messages that came o t from the leaders of the different co ntries# $his incl des of co rse! o r own %residents message#&till! in order to get a sense of the gen ineness of these messages! it was necessary to relate what was being said! to who was saying it# $herefore! when %ope 'rancis! a modest and pro peoples pope stated that "r "andela had forged (a new &o th )frica b ilt on the firm fo ndations of non-violence! reconciliation and tr th*! there was no reason to do bt the sentiment e+pressed# &imilarly! why sho ld one do bt ,an -i-moon whose message read. (/et s contin e each day to be inspired by Nelson "andelas lifelong e+ample*# 0e also described him as (a giant for 1 stice and a down-to-earth h man inspiration*# 2ther messages that one wo ld not have diffic lty in accepting as gen ine were. )ngela "er3el of 4ermany who said that "r "andelas*political legacy of non-violence and the condemnation of all forms of racism* wo ld contin e to inspire#

'rench %resident 'rancois 0ollande stating that "r "andelas message wo ld contin e to inspire fighters for freedom and to give confidence to peoples in the defence of 1 st ca ses and niversal rights*# Indian %rime "inister who while saying it was not only a loss to &o th )frica b t a loss to India too! called him a (tr e 4handian*# $here was gen ine and nderstandable grief and sorrow on the part of the leaders of many )frican co ntries despite many of them falling short of the standard set by "andela# 5h r -enyatta being a case in point#In certain cases the trib tes were clearly ironic and in some cases downright hypocritical given the ideological stances adopted by these co ntries or the actions of the leaders ma3ing these statements# 'or e+ample when 6 een 7li8abeth II! d ring whose ten re the 9rown co ntenanced and endorsed apartheid for decades! described Nelson "andela as one of the towering fig res of the 20th 9ent ry! who inspired yo ng and old with his fight for e: ality! it ree3ed of hypocrisy# $he same co ld be said of ;avid 9ameron who prono nced that (2ne of the brightest lights of o r world has gone o t*# 9ameron was 3nown to have led a gro p of 9onservative yo th to lobby for the removal of sanctions imposed on &o th )frica! d ring the height of its apartheid r le# <0is recent foray in &ri /an3a to stand p for the rights of $amils! is somewhat mitigatory if done for the right reasons#= 9hina too with the many internal problems pertaining to minortities it has to deal with! was very caref l with the wor3ding of its message# /i > anchao! the 9hinese ?ice %resident said "andela spent all his life advocating and implementing racial e: ality and reconciliation# 0e not only was a hero in the heart of &o th )fricans! b t also won global recognition! &ome messages stand o t for their sheer parado+ bordering on egregio sness@-im >ong Nam! %resident of the %residi m of the Norths & preme %eoples )ssembly while e+pressing his profo nd condolences to the people of &o th )frica said that (the feats performed by Nelson "andela in the str ggle against racism and for democracy wo ld always be remembered by the &o th )frican people and progressive man3ind*# %resident )ssad of &yria! who is c rrently fighting one of the most r thless! br tal and merciless battles to maintain his r le over the co ntry! res lting in massive scale death! s ffering and displacement of his own

people! said that Nelson "andelas life was an inspiration to freedom and a lesson to tyrants@ It is with great pain and sorrow that the Aep blic of ,elar s learned the news of the death of former %resident of the Aep blic of &o th )frica! the legendary fighter for freedom! e: ality and h man rights Nelson "andela# 0is commitment to the ideals of 1 stice and h manity! the ni: e wisdom of a statesman will always be an e+ample to politicians aro nd the world!* 0ow m ch of an e+ample it was to %resident / 3 shen3o needs no elaboration# $his brings me finally to o r own %residents message! which was! as is to be e+pected! a very long and rambling message of B paragraphs# <I will for the p rposes of this article leave o t his message as the 9hair in 2ffice of the 9ommonwealth#= /i3e that of -im >ong Nam and &yrias )ssad the message is parado+ical! b t if one is discerning eno gh! one co ld also see a "achiavellian side to the message# 0is message starts off by referring to "r Nelson "andela as the (great leader of the str ggle for freedom and a hero to millions aro nd the world#* 0e goes on to say (that the late leader inspired the &o th )frican people with patriotism by co rageo sly leading them to achieve independence with ethnic harmony*# &ince the passing away of "r Nelson "andela! I have been reading many reviews of his life! watching several $? programmes portraying his achievements and reading the h ndreds of trib tes paid to this great statesman# Nowhere did I find a reference to his inspiring his people with patriotism# )s an er dite lawyer! and a person who fo ght tirelessly for 1 stice! he wo ld have been aware of &am el Cohnsons prono ncement that (%atriotism is the last ref ge of a sco ndrel#* ' rther more the str ggle in &o th )frica was an internal str ggle against apartheid and patriotism had no part in it# $herefore! why did the %residents message all de to (patriotism* and its lin3 to the (achievement of independence with ethnic harmony*! instead of the pillars of Nelson "andelas legacy to his people D (tr th! reconciliation and 1 stice#*E $his is e+actly where %resident Aa1apa3se failed d e to a lac3 of vision! poor statesmanship and nscr p lo sness! hence the "achiavellain twist to his

message to 1 stify this failed approach# &ie8ing the solemnity and profo ndness of the moment the mesage was also targeted to the people of &ri /an3a in the hope that it wo ld ac: ire a thenticity by association# $he other part of his message was p re hypocritical rhetoric. (the legacy of peace the late %resident "andela established! and the philosophy of life he e+emplified have been a great inspiration for those of s in &ri /an3a who! for many years strived for peace*# $he degree of hypocrisy was e+acerbated by the personal note. (0is life and philosophy have deeply inspired me and I consider %resident "andelas demise a great loss to me personally* $he c lt re of imp nity! the absence of the r le of law! the corr ption ! the nepotism! the enactment of the 1Fth amendment! the impeachment of the 9hief C stice! entrenching militari8ed r le in the North and 7ast and failing to provide peace! reconciliation and 1 stice to the $amil people! nder his %residency! do not reflect his having been deeply inspired by the great Nelson "andela# 2n a note of hope I wo ld li3e to concl de with e+cerpts of the message of ,arac3 2bama. ("adiba transformed &o th )frica and moved all of s# 0is 1o rney from a prisoner to a president embodied the promise that h man beings D and co ntries D can change for the better#* $his is yo r c e "r# %resident D ma3e that change for the better# >o will then earn the right to bas3 in "andelas glory and earn the 3 dos of the world#