ANC ‘lowers revolutionary banner’ in honour of Mama

WINNIE Madikizela-Mandela’s courage inspired freedom fighters in South Africa, Africa and the diaspora, ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule said.

“The ANC lowers its revolutionary banner in honour of the memory of this great woman who was so loved and whose name forever will be inscribed in history,” Magashule said in a live broadcast on SABC.

“Comrade Winnie Madikizela-Mandela dedicated her life to the betterment of her people and she worked for the realisation of that right until the end of her life. She was an inspiration to both young and old.

“The life of Winnie Mandela epitomised humility and fortitude… She faced unknown trials that would have broken the spirit of any human being. But hers was an extraordinary spirit that will not be quelled, no matter the hardships.”

Family spokesperson Victor Dlamini said she died peacefully after a long illness, surrounded by her family and loved ones.

“She fought valiantly against the apartheid state and sacrificed her life for the freedom of the country. Her activism and resistance to apartheid landed her in jail on numerous occasions, eventually causing her banishment to the small town of Brandfort in the then Orange Free State,” Dlamini said.

“She kept the memory of her imprisoned husband Nelson Mandela alive during his years on Robben Island and helped give the Struggle for justice in South Africa one its most recognisable faces.

“She dedicated most of her adult life to the cause of the people and for this was known far and wide as the Mother of the Nation.”