Archbishop Tutu: Nelson Mandela services excluded Afrikaners
BBC News online -- 17 December 2013
Archbishop Desmond Tutu said Nelson Mandela deliberately included Afrikaners
Archbishop
Desmond Tutu has said that Nelson Mandela would have been appalled that
Afrikaners were excluded from memorial services marking his death.
A mainly Afrikaner party introduced white minority rule, which Mr Mandela opposed, spending 27 years in jail.
But after becoming South Africa's first black president, Mr Mandela preached reconciliation with his former enemies.
Archbishop Tutu criticised the ANC for being too prominent at the services
Analysis
Archbishop Desmond Tutu has always seen himself as the moral voice of South Africa.
He was a fierce critic of the white minority regime and won the Nobel peace prize in 1984. Since apartheid ended, he has turned out to be just as critical of the African National Congress (ANC), the liberation movement now in power.
He has criticised ex-Presidents Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki but, most of all, incumbent Jacob Zuma.
He appears to have become increasingly disillusioned with the ANC. In June, he lamented that people were surrendering to the "altar of power and wealth", and lauded the formation of the Agang opposition party.
Now, he has raised concern about the future of nation-building, condemning the "blatant exclusion" of Afrikaner church leaders during services to honour Mr Mandela after his death.
It was typical of "The arch", as he is affectionately known by South Africans. He speaks his mind and his critics are reluctant to hit back at him. They know he has moral authority, but very little political influence to change the course of the nation.
Archbishop Tutu also strongly
criticised the prominence of the governing African National Congress
(ANC) during the week of events following Mr Mandela's death on 5
December.
Archbishop Tutu fought apartheid, along with Mr Mandela and the ANC, but has become increasingly critical of the party, welcoming the launch of a new opposition party in June.
He almost did not attend Sunday's funeral for his close friend, saying he had not been invited.
In a statement, he described Mr Mandela as a "nation builder" who "went out of his way" to include Afrikaners after the end of apartheid.
"We were amiss in not being as inclusive as Madiba [Mandela's clan name] would certainly have been," he said.
"To the extent that I can do so meaningfully, I apologise to our sisters and brothers in the Afrikaner Community," he added.
Both Archbishop Tutu and Mr Mandela won Nobel Peace Prizes for their work in bringing an end to apartheid.
The former Anglican archbishop of
Cape Town was awarded the prize in 1984 and has since gone on to become
the recipient of other awards, including the Templeton prize which
honours a living person who has "made an exceptional contribution to
affirming life's spiritual dimension".
Archbishop Tutu said Mr Mandela's belief in reconciliation was evident in the composition of the new national anthem, which has a verse in Afrikaans, and his involvement in "the 1995 Rugby World Cup, the lunch and tea engagements with the widows of apartheid presidents."
Rugby was closely associated with Afrikaners and Mr Mandela's decision to wear the national team shirt in 1995 won him great respect in the community.
"Madiba was a nation-builder. I pray that we will uphold this critical aspect of his mission forever," the archbishop concluded.
Labels: Culture, Multiculturalism, Nelson Mandela, South Africa
posted by Pieface @ Tuesday, December 17, 2013
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