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| Indian-origin anti-apartheid acti, |
| Indian-origin anti-apartheid activist pays tribute to Nelson Mandela
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| SOUTH AFRICA
, 6-December-2013
4:10:21 AM |
| Veteran Indian-origin anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Kathrada, who spent 26 years in South African jails with Nelson Mandela and became one of his closet aides, today vowed to continue the ideals his mentor stood for.
"While we may be drowned in sorrow and grief, we must be proud and grateful that after the long walk paved with obstacles and suffering, we salute you as a fighter for freedom to the end," he said following the demise of Mandela, who died today at the age of 95.
"Farewell my elder brother, my mentor, my leader. With all the energy and determination at our command, we pledge to join the people of South Africa and the world to perpetuate the ideals and values for which you have devoted your life,"he said in a statement issued by the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
Kathrada, 85, said he and Mandela used to refer to each other as "Madala", which means old man.
"It became our standard form of informal address. To me it signifies mutual trust, respect, liking, and close comradeship."
"Madala, as you light-heartedly started calling me some years ago, it both grieves me and inspires me to write this to you now, with the hour of your death still a fresh wound in our peoples' hearts," said Kathrada, whose parents hailed from Surat in Gujarat.
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