UPDATE: Winnie Mandela: South African anti-apartheid campaigner dies at 81
Last edited Mon Apr 2, 2018, 11:23 AM - Edit history (1)
Source: BBC
Winnie Madikizela Mandela was the former wife of South Africa's first black president, Nelson Mandela. The couple - famously pictured hand-in-hand as Mr Mandela walked free from prison after 27 years - were a symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle for nearly three decades. However, in later years her reputation became tainted legally and politically.
Family spokesman Victor Dlamini said in a statement: "She died after a long illness, for which she had been in and out of hospital since the start of the year. "She succumbed peacefully in the early hours of Monday afternoon surrounded by her family and loved ones."
Mrs Mandela was born in 1936 in the Eastern Cape - then known as Transkei. She was a trained social worker when she met her future husband in the 1950s. They were married for a total of 38 years, although for almost three decades of that time they were separated due to Mr Mandela's imprisonment.
It was Mrs Mandela who took his baton after he was jailed for life, becoming an international symbol of resistance to apartheid and a rallying point for poor, black township residents who demanded their freedom.
Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43621112?ns_mchannel=social&ns_campaign=bbc_breaking&ns_source=twitter&ns_linkname=news_central
Original BBC article & headline -
South African anti-apartheid campaigner Winnie Mandela has died aged 81, her personal assistant says.
Winnie Madikizela Mandela was the former wife of South Africa's first black president, Nelson Mandela.
The couple - famously pictured hand-in-hand as Mr Mandela walked free from prison after 27 years - were a symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle for nearly three decades. However, in later years her reputation became tainted legally and politically.
Her family are expected to release a statement later today.
Updated WaPo article -
By Stephanie Hanes April 2 at 10:34 AM
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, the former wife of Nelson Mandela and for decades one of South Africas most prominent and polarizing figures, died April 2 at a hospital in Johannesburg. She was 81.
Her family confirmed the death in a statement, according to several South African newspapers, and said she had been hospitalized for an illness earlier this year.
At the time of her death, long after her divorce from the countrys first democratically elected president, Mrs. Madikizela-Mandela was still called the Mother of the Nation. And in many ways, she epitomized the so-called new South Africa far more than her idealized former husband.
She was beautiful and violent. Her bravery under the brutal Apartheid regime won her lasting respect and adulation; allegations that she was the kingpin of a deadly vigilante group during the 1980s earned her fear and mistrust.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/winnie-madikizela-mandela-south-africas-mother-of-the-nation-dies-at-81/2018/04/02/095c5360-3680-11e8-acd5-35eac230e514_story.html
First saw a breaking below on WaPo below but got the BBC link to come up first.
by Washington Post Staff April 2 at 10:21 AM
At the time of her death, long after her divorce from the countrys first democratically elected president, Madikizela-Mandela was still called the Mother of the Nation. And in many ways, she epitomized the new South Africa far more than her idealized former husband.
She was a political insider who often played the role of outsider. While other leaders moved to luxurious, previously all-white suburbs, Madikizela-Mandela stayed in Soweto, the black township southwest of Johannesburg.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/world/wp/2018/04/02/winnie-madikizela-mandela-dies-at-81-she-was-a-prominent-anti-apartheid-activist-and-former-wife-of-nelson-mandela/?utm_term.109dadc99350
= new reply since forum marked as read
Some might recall that as South Africa was transitioning away from Apartheid, the one thing its apologists always brought up as an argument against Mandela was his, by then, ex-wife Winnie and the numerous scandals attached to her (including a murder).
Her incendiary rhetoric ended up being fodder for the RW crowd as well.
But then, as much as she went through at the hands of the Apartheid police, I suppose anyone would become a little rattled, even unhinged at times. She was only human.
God speed.
