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South Africa: Johannesburg's largest boulevard renamed Winnie-Mandela

Winnie Mandela is still in the news in South Africa. The former anti-apartheid activist and wife of President Nelson Mandela, who died in 2018, reportedly turned 87 on Tuesday, September 26. His name will be given to the largest boulevard in Johannesburg.

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Johannesburg Mayor Kabelo Gwanda (right) at the opening of Winnie Mandela Avenue on 26 September. © Romain Chanson / RFI

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With our correspondent in South Africa, Romain Chanson

To celebrate her posthumous birthday – she died in 2018 – the city of Johannesburg renamed a large avenue after her in place of William Nicol, the administrator of the former Transvaal province under apartheid. Having been on the ground when Nelson Mandela was in prison, Winnie Mandela holds a special place in the hearts of activists. But this name change is not to the liking of the opposition.

« The mother of all soldiers »

Veterans of the former armed wing of the ruling ANC party sing in honour of Winnie Mandela. Jabulani Nhlapo admires this fighter: "She is the mother of the Revolution, we appreciate her more than Nelson Mandela, Winnie, she was the mother of all soldiers.

A radical activist, Winnie Mandela was blamed for her brutality, including assassinations. She was also convicted of fraud. She is a personality with two faces, but for Kabelo Gwamanda, the mayor of Johannesburg, of the Muslim party Al Jama-ah, it is first and foremost a model: "It all depends on what you consider controversial, it is a question of interpretation but for me, who grew up admiring her courage to have opposed power, I see her as a heroine.

► Read also: Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, an extraordinary destiny

ANC and EFF activists participated in the inauguration of Winnie Mandela Avenue, unlike the Democratic Alliance, which opposed the name change. The Conservative Party sees it as an erasure of history and a budgetary waste, "let's fix the roads before renaming them," says the party.

We also learned, yesterday, Tuesday, September 26, of the death of Zoleka Mandela, granddaughter of Winnie and Nelson Mandela. She died of cancer at the age of 43. She was known for talking about her battle with addiction and cancer in an autobiographical book.

Read alsoIn South Africa, seven opposition parties create an alliance for the 2024 elections

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