The remains of the late South African freedom fighter, activist and former wife of late President Nelson Mandela, Mrs. Winnie Madikizela Mandela, have been interred amidst eulogies and tributes.
About 40, 000 mourners gathered at the Orlando Stadium, Soweto to bid farewell to the heroine of the apartheid struggle who passed on April 2, 2018 at the age of 81 years.
Among dignitaries present at the funeral were presidents of Namibia and the Republic of Congo as well as civil rights leaders from around the world, including Rev. Jesse Jackson.
In his eulogy to the apartheid icon, President of South Africa, Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa, noted that late Winnie Mandela’s life was “dedicated to the unity of daughters and sons of the African soil as well as the unity of the oppressed of all nations.”
He added: “In death she brought us all together, from near and far, across many nations and continents, to mourn, to pay homage, to remember and to reminisce.
“In death, she demonstrated that our many differences along political party and racial lines and the numerous disputes we may have are eclipsed by our shared desire to follow her lead in building a just, equitable and caring society.”
President Ramaphosa asserted that Mrs. Mandela lived “a life of service and compassion as she chose for her vocation the alleviation of suffering of others. She trained and worked as one who provides support and care and comfort to those most deeply affected by poverty, hunger and illness.
“Yet, like many of the great leaders of her generation, she understood that the suffering she encountered did not happen at the edge of society. She saw for herself the deliberate intent of the apartheid rulers to impoverish the people of this country. Her conscience, her conviction, left her with no choice but to resist.”
Extolling her contributions to the struggle against apartheid, the South African president declared; “She was an African woman who in her attitude, her words and her actions defied the very premise of apartheid ideology and male superiority. Proud, defiant, articulate, she exposed the lie of apartheid. She laid bare the edifice of patriarchy. Loudly and without apology, she spoke truth to power. Yet through everything she endured.”
In her own tribute Winnie’s eldest daughter, Zenani Mandala-Dlamini noted: “Long before it was fashionable to call for Nelson Mandela’s release from Robben Island, it was my mother who kept his memory alive.”
She stressed that her mother had made a choice to raise two families, hers and the beloved country.
“She cherished freedom as much as she treasured family. She protected both from constant assault from apartheid state,” she said.
Other speakers at the burial included Julius Malema, Leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) whose tribute took a different tone from others.
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Calling out those whom he said sold Mrs. Mandela out, he said despite his grief at the loss‚ he was comforted in the way she died‚ adding that she did not sell out her people.
“Mama, those who sold you out to the regime are here. They are crying the loudest more than all of us who cared for you‚” he said.
He lashed out at the former leaders of the United Democratic Front (UDF) who held a press conference during apartheid to dissociate themselves from her as well as ANC leaders who called her a criminal and also prevented her from speaking at youth struggle icon Peter Mokaba’s funeral.
“Sell outs‚ we see you… Life is so unfair‚” Malema said, adding; “Winnie Mandela is our mother. We know her. We don’t need George Fivaz (former police commissioner during apartheid) to tell us about Winnie Mandela.”
He called on the people of Soweto‚ where she lived until her death‚ never to forget her and urged the government to rename the Cape Town airport after her.
