Zindzi Mandela, the daughter of former South African President and liberation hero Nelson Mandela, died, the Nelson Mandela Foundation confirmed Monday.
Zindzi Mandela, whose mother was anti-apartheid activist Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, rose to international fame when she read Nelson Mandela’s rejection of then-President PW Botha’s offer of freedom in 1985.
State broadcaster SABC said the 59-year-old man, who was serving as South Africa’s ambassador to Denmark, died Monday in a Johannesburg hospital.
“Zindzi will not only be remembered as the daughter of the heroes of our struggle, Tata Nelson and Mama Winnie Mandela, but as a heroine of struggle in her own right,” said South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor. Africa well. “
The Nelson Mandela Foundation, created to protect the legacy of South Africa’s first democratically elected president, said Zindzi Mandela will be remembered as “a special soul.”
“We value his generosity, his warmth and his sense of humor,” the foundation said in a statement.
