21- gun salute  in honour of Madiba

'Honour the Legend', was SABC's (South African Broadcasting Corporation) tag line for its Mandela mourning broadcast. A trip down his memory lane, the broadcast included various programs to recreate his life for the nation to celebrate his life. 



It formed part of 10 days national mourning declared by president Jacob Zuma. Nelson Mandela was the first president of the Republic of South Africa who passed away on 5th December, 2013 at the age of 95.  He was endearingly called Tata (father) or Madiba (his clan name) 

During the period, no day was declared a holiday, but employees were allowed time-out to attend mourning functions conducted all across. A period of remembrance and tributes, however did not pass by in somber grieve and melancholy, but in celebrating his life, his achievements and out standing contributions that transformed a racially divided South Africa into a racially understanding, tolerant and an economically viable one. 

People conducted services across the nation; visited historical centers, museums, his home, places he lived during his 95 years of life including his birth place; they conducted talks, speeches, musicals, among who made poems included children as young and five; they kept flowers for him daily and hung pictures and kept night vigils; his home was transformed into a shrine. Various faith groups conducted prayers

For those who couldn't visit any places there was the tv broadcast. Its programs included  visual entertainments, news, narrations, panel discussions, interviews, films, reading books, photo-clips, twitter messages, videos, personal messages, musicals and so on.

Nelson Mandela was born in 1918 in a remote village Qunu in the current Eastern Cape region of South Africa as the son of a local chief. His father had four wives. As it was customary in that area and time, he started life as a herd boy, went through acute difficulties in life, including deprivation, poverty and as he grew up racial discrimination from a white oppressive, migrant ruling regime which practiced that people of different colour skins should live apart; white being superior and black inferior. That racial apart-ness was legalized in 1948 as apartheid.  UN had declared apartheid as a crime against humanity, India passed sanctions against it, yet apartheid survived for years gaining energy from the lukewarm attitude of the western nations including the US and the UK. 

At one stage Mandela resisted the apartheid regime through passive resistance, but finding its futility he and a large contingent of his fellow country men went underground to practice armed struggle. The regime trapped him and jailed for 27 years. When released in 1990, he negotiated with his enemies, made them friends on equal terms. In 1994, after the national election he became the first president of the nation. His political party was ANC(African National Congress) which he formed;  he had said once to his people, if ANC does what the National Party of the White regime did then they should deal with it in the same way they dealt with the National Party. Though he embraced armed struggle once, his nation building was based on reconciliation, which among other things was an expression of his shrewdness and political judgment.

The biggest of the mourning was organized at the FNB stadium, Johannesburg. It was attended by more than 90 world leaders, who came from all parts of world to pay tribute to him. It showcased how Mandela had become a world ironic figure, and how the world appreciated his unique leadership iand how they cherished his ideals. Among those nations included the US, UK, Cuba, China, India, Arab, Asian and African nations. Mandela had first addressed the South African public at the FNB stadium just after his jail release in 1990.

Indian president Pranab Mukarji gave a speech on the occasion. India had slapped the apartheid regime with sanction; its main concern were the Indians who lived there; the descendants of the engendered labourers  recruited by the colonial government, the business men and the traders. 



The 10 days mourning run culminated in his body laying to rest, on 15th December, at his home village Qunu. The funeral ceremony being private as per his family's wish was not open to public; yes the last moment is strictly for the beloved and the closed ones, no question. The official part of the ceremony, open to public was mainly an African affair rather than international, after which the South African Military took over the proceedings. His body was transported to his resting place following the military protocol; from where the family took over.

When the coffin bearing Mandela's body was lowered into the coffin, the military fired 21 gun-salutes in his honour. 
 
 Tozuma Mali, a Black lady army captain was in charge for the gun-salute.
 ''I cannot lie. I am who I am because of this man....Before him the army was only for white people. When we saw a soldier we would be so scared''
Her reported words stood testimony to how Mandela had addressed South Africa's racial and gender inequalities, though according to her a lot more were desired in the gender field.


http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/mandela-farewell-pranab-mujherjee-sonia-gandhi-barack-obama-bush-south-africa/1/328736.html

http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/eastern-cape/gallery-nelson-mandela-laid-to-
rest-1.1622794#.Uq2xzydqQl4

 http://www.un.org.za/about/the-united-nations-partner-in-the-struggle-against-apartheid/