Staff reporter
Archbishop Desmond Tutu brought humility, courage and humour to the struggle. His gift was to show us our common humanity.
South Africa was blessed that in one crucial generation it produced so many extraordinary people – Nelson Mandela and Tutu first among them. And now they are gone.
The mere mention of Tutu’s name has, over the years, evoked a multitude of different emotions with many people.
For some it conjured up a feisty old man walking boldly down Adderley Street, leading thousands in protest. Who can forget the image of the Arch, finally overcome with emotion, leaning forward with his head on the table at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as he listens to one more painful story of abuse?
Remember the famous interview with the BBC in 2011? Speaking about the treatment of the Tibetan government by the ANC authorities, he called the ANC government worse than the apartheid government.
“With that [Nationalist] government we were expecting it. With our government you expected a government that was sensitive to the sentiments of the constitution,” he said.
Then the passion flares. Speaking with long pauses, he says: “Hey, Mister Zuma. You and your government, don’t represent me! You represent your own interests. And I’m warning you. I really am warning you, out of love. I am warning you like I warned the Nationalists. One day we will start praying for the defeat of the ANC government.”
Dele Olojede, the Pulitzer prize winning journalist, wrote on Twitter: “Feelings of gratitude first of all, but also sadness, as we wake up to the news of the passing of Archbishop Desmond Mpilo Tutu. A giant among the species, and a great and generous soul.”
Photo: Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation
