Thousands mark Mandela anniversary at prison

SENIOR AFRICAN National Congress (ANC) stalwarts yesterday urged South Africans who gathered outside Nelson Mandela’s last prison not to allow former state president FW de Klerk to rewrite history by claiming to have ended apartheid.

Last week South Africa’s last apartheid-era president said he unbanned the ANC and released political prisoners on February 2nd, 1990, predominantly because of the collapse of global communism in 1989, which eased fears that the former liberation movement would introduce a socialist system of governance.

However, at a commemorative event in Drakenstein prison near Paarl, where Mr Mandela was released from prison on February 11th, 1990, after 27 years of incarceration, Cyril Ramaphosa, the former head of the reception committee, said it was the ordinary people who freed Mr Mandela and the ANC.

“You unbanned it yourself. You hoisted the flag of our people high, and you said the ANC leads, the ANC lives,” he said.

“When Comrade Nelson Mandela was released, as he walked out of these prison gates, we knew that his freedom meant that our freedom had also arrived. As he became free we also knew that we were now free.”

Thousands of South Africans gathered early yesterday at Drakenstein prison, which was called Victor Verster during the apartheid era, to watch former struggle veterans and current ANC luminaries re-enact the iconic moment when Mr Mandela took his first steps as a free man.

Arm in arm, veterans Mac Maharaj, Cyril Ramaphosa, Ahmed Kathrada, Andrew Mlangeni, Trevor Manuel and dozens of others participated in the 500m “freedom walk” re-enactment to mark its 20th anniversary.

Mr Mandela (91) and his former wife Winnie did not participate despite earlier indications they would make an appearance. Mr Mandela was said to be too old to attend and Mrs Mandela too emotional to relive the moment.

Also conspicuous by his absence was current South African president Jacob Zuma, who has become embroiled in controversy recently over fathering his 20th child, which was out of wedlock.

Mr Zuma, a polygamist who has been married five times, has been widely criticised for his sexual indiscretions and has since publicly apologised to the nation.

Noluthando Masana from Mitchells Plain, a township outside of Cape Town, said she was unconcerned that Mr Zuma had not made an appearance, because she knew he was busy preparing for his state of the nation speech in parliament, where Mr Mandela received a rapturous applause.

President Zuma in his speech, which was watched by millions, promised accelerated government delivery and a new focus on industrial policy to speed up economic growth and job creation.

“Economic indicators suggest that we are now turning the corner. Economic activity is rising in South Africa and we expect growth going forward . . . It is too soon though to be certain of the pace of recovery.

“Government will, therefore, not withdraw its support measures,” he said.