Desmond Tutu, who died last Sunday at the age of 90 and whose funeral is held this Saturday (1), was considered the moral conscience of South Africa, a person who helped topple apartheid and then poured his energy into the service of reconciliation. country and human rights.
Until the end of his life, the Anglican Archbishop Emeritus, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984, imposed his sincerity in denouncing injustices and the excesses of power, regardless of the target of criticism.
Tutu never ceased to criticize the South African government, including the African National Congress (ANC), the main movement that fought against the racist apartheid regime and that has run the country since 1994.
The great themes of international politics did not escape his criticisms either. He attacked the Church itself to defend the rights of homosexuals, defended a Palestinian state and said in September 2012 that former US President George W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair should be tried by the International Criminal Court of The Hague for the Iraq War.
But it was in his own country that his comments had the greatest impact. In late 2011, when Pretoria failed to grant a visa to the Dalai Lama, whom he had invited for his 80th birthday in time, he accused the government of giving in to pressure from China.
“Our government is worse than the apartheid government,” he said. “It is scandalous that those who suffered under an oppressive regime are now doing this sort of thing,” he added.
He also protested the poor condition of South African schools, which remains very bad for most black students after years of ANC rule.
“If Nelson Mandela saw this, he would cry,” he said.
The Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town was known for his sincerity, humility, infectious energy and, above all, humour.
When asked about his role as the nation’s moral conscience, he smiled and said, “You see me in front of a mirror saying boy, you’re an icon, did you know that? I think that no man who is bestowed this honor considers that this is really what people see in him. You just go your way and do what you think is right.”
In the same mood, he thanked his family, who helped him keep his feet on the ground.
“Recently my wife put up a sign in her room that said: You have the right to have the wrong opinions. You see… they are here to deflate the great opinion I have of me”, he stated with a laugh.
– “Rainbow Nation” –
Desmond Tutu gained fame during apartheid, organizing peaceful rallies to denounce segregation and pushing for international economic sanctions against Pretoria’s white regime.
With the advent of democracy in 1994, he coined the term “Rainbow Nation” to describe South Africa and chaired for 30 months the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, created to help the country overcome the traumas of apartheid atrocities.
“Resentment and anger are bad for blood pressure and digestion,” he declared at the time.
Desmond Tutu attacked the inconsistencies of South Africa today, with public criticism of former President Thabo Mbeki for his role in the fight against AIDS or the judicial problems of former President Jacob Zuma.
He also drew the attention of his compatriots to the violence in society and lamented the “loss of a sense of right and wrong”. Tutu defended immigrants during the 2008 episodes of xenophobic violence in South Africa.
Born October 7, 1931 in Klerksdorp, two hours from Johannesburg, Desmond Tutu suffered childhood polio. Marked by his experience, he wanted to go to medical school, but his family was unable to pay for his studies.
Ordained a priest of the Church of England at age 30, he studied and taught in the UK and Lesotho before settling in Johannesburg in 1975.
Ordained a priest of the Anglican Church at age 30, Tutu studied and taught in the UK and Lesotho before settling in Johannesburg in 1975.
Increasingly known in the fight against apartheid, his work was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984.
Appointed archbishop in 1986, Desmond Tutu was the first black person to lead the South African Anglican Church.
Prostate cancer, diagnosed in 1997, nearly ended his career, but this man of great vitality has continued to be one of the great figures in South African civil society, despite his official retirement from public life.
A tireless fighter for human rights and democracy, Desmond Tutu has lived since 2010 virtually removed from public events. One of his last appearances took place in May 2021, when he was vaccinated against covid-19.
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