|
|
| Mandela celebrates 91st birthday
|
|
|
| |
Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) -
Former South African President Nelson Mandela’s
will celebrate his 91st birthday at his Johannesburg home on
Saturday.
Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe is to attend the main party, to be hosted by
the Department of Arts and Culture and the African National Congress (ANC)
parliamentary caucus in the city centre.
At least 15,000 people are expected to attend, while Madiba’s co-accused during
the treason and Rivonia trials will also be in attendance.
People throughout the world will be encouraged to dedicate 67 minutes of their t
ime to doing something good for humanity. The 67 minutes symbolises 67 years of
uninterrupted and selfless service to the people of South Africa and the world s
ince Mandela joined the ANC in 1942.
Members of Parliament, who are currently on a two-week parliamentary constituenc
y break, are expected to paint or refurbish schools, classrooms, clinics or
hospitals across the country.
Meanwhile, Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform Gugile Nkwinti will ini
tiate self-help projects in the Limpopo to mark the occasion, while Basic Educat
i
on
Minister Angie Motshekga is expected to lead a campaign to promote a special foc
us on Mandela during school assemblies.
Elsewhere, New York will host the inaugural "Mandela Day". Centered on a massiv
e musical concert, the event is designed as a call for people everywhere to
honour Mandela's inspiration by observing the day, not as a holiday, but as a da
y to opt in.
The concert, taking place at New York's Radio City Music Hall, boasts a range of
artists from all over the world, including Stevie Wonder, Wyclef Jean, Aretha
Franklin, Loyiso, Will.I.Am, Jesse McCartney, Cyndi Lauper, Zucchero, Josh Groba
n, Baaba Maal, Angelique Kidjo and the Soweto Gospel Choir.
Mandela was born on 18 July 1918 in a village near Mthatha in the Eastern Cape,
to a Thembu royal family.
He joined the ANC in 1942, forming part of a group of young members of the movem
ent that teamed together under the leadership of Anton Lembede to embark on
the formidable task of transforming the ANC into a powerful mass movement.
Mandela's speech from the dock during the Rivonia trial in 1964 was a reaffirmat
ion of the historical mission of his organisation.
He said in that speech: "During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this str
uggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have
f
ought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and f
r
ee society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportu
n
ities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be,
i
t is an ideal for
which I am prepared to die."
|
| |
| Cape Town - 17/07/2009 |
| |
|
|