In celebrating former President Nelson Mandela’s birthday, President Cyril Ramaphosa called on citizens to promote peace.

In his weekly letter to the nation, Ramaphosa wrote that peace in the world, an end to conflicts everywhere, and a true international fellowship of humankind, are the ideals that Mandela stood for.

Mandela died after a prolonged respiratory infection on December 5, 2013.

“Such is his towering legacy that it is a day celebrated around the world, with its international observance having been declared by the United Nations in 2009. This is in testament to his role as a revered Statesman, unifier and above all, as a peacemaker,” Ramaphosa said.

He called for negotiation and compromise as opposed to violence, the use of force and war. 
 
South Africa’s contribution to world peace is through supporting societies in conflict, and this is largely as a result of Mandela legacy, he explained.

Ramaphosa noted that the country’s experience with negotiating an end to apartheid and with building a multiparty democracy is regularly sought out by parties seeking to bring conflict to an end.
 
“Since democracy we have played such a role in Northern Ireland, Palestine, Zimbabwe, South Sudan, Eswatini, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Lesotho, Ethiopia, and most recently, in Sudan,” he explained.
 
Last week, Ramaphosa met with the Deputy President of the Transitional Sovereign Council of Sudan to discuss the support South Africa can lend to the convening of an inclusive dialogue process towards a permanent peace.
 
Earlier this month Ramaphosa was in the DRC, where South Africa is playing a key role in facilitating dialogue, conflict resolution and providing technical assistance under the 2013 Peace and Security Cooperation Framework for the DRC and the Great Lakes.

Last month marked six months since the signing of the Agreement on Cessation of Hostilities Agreement between the government of Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front in Pretoria on the 2nd of November 2022.

“This peace agreement that South Africa played a role in brokering under the auspices of the African Union, continues to hold. We will continue to follow in [Mandela’s] footsteps by calling for political solutions to conflicts. We are fortified by the towering moral courage of great leaders like President Mandela,” Ramaphosa said.