Ramaphosa pays glowing tribute to Zindzi Mandela’s Family

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July 17. (Johannesburg) South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has praised the family of the country’s first black President Nelson Mandela for revealing that their daughter, Zindzi,  died of Covid-19 infection on Monday.

The gesture will “encourage acceptance” of those infected, Mr Ramaphosa said.

The cause of her death has earlier not been disclosed to the general public.Zindzi was buried on Friday morning alongside her mother, anti-apartheid activist Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.

South Africa still remains the worst African country  hit by coronavirus, with more than 320,000 cases.

There have been more than 4,600 deaths, and government projections estimated this could rise to 50,000 by the end of the year.

Despite public awareness of how the virus is spread, its symptoms and effects there, have been some reported cases of stigmatisation of those infected neighbors.

Below is the statement from Mr.Cyril Ramaphosa.

“I would like to thank the Mandela family for the very important gesture of sharing this information with the nation. This is a virus that affects us all, and there should never be any stigma around people who become infected,” he tweeted ahead of Zindzi Mandela’s funeral.

He added that revealing the cause of her death, was “a final act of solidarity in the life of a woman who devoted her life to the cause of her fellow South Africans.”

Ms Mandela had “during our years of struggle brought home the inhumanity of the apartheid system and the unshakeable resolve of our fight for freedom,” Mr Ramaphosa said in a statement after her death on Monday.

Zindzi Mandela, 59, was Nelson Mandela’s sixth child and his second with Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, his second wife.