Daily Sun (December 10 2013) - A PART of me is gone with his parting, said Andrew Mlangeni. "I come to say thank you for instilling in the world the principles of love for one another." "WE SALUTE YOU, MY COMRADE AND FRIEND," HE SAID.
Speaking at a conference held in Rosebank, Joburg, Mlangeni, who spent many years on Robben Island with Madiba, said: "It is with a heavy heart that I have to bear the pain of witnessing not only Madiba but also many veterans and the comrades of our struggle depart, but my sadness is tempered by the comforting knowledge that our separation will not now be long."
He said he had walked a road with Mandela full of thorns, danger, trials and tribulations but also a time of unforgettable beauty, laughter and joy.
"Despite the temptation to weep, we shall not weep for Madiba," he said. "I suggest that we celebrate his life, a life well lived, with purpose. We celebrate a life of selflessness, a life capable of turning adversities to triumph."
He said he first came across Madiba in 1950 at Orlando Station. "A friend of mine, Simon Malaza, introduced him to me as Mr Mandela, a very wise man."
"At that stage I did not know our lives were intertwined, bound together by destiny."
He said when he became active in ANC politics in Dube Village, Soweto, he got to know Madiba better.
When the doors to peaceful demonstrations were barred to the ANC, Madiba was given the mandate to form
Umkhonto we Sizwe.
"Because of our activities while Madiba was operating underground, I became one of his first recruits to MK," said Mlangeni.
"Along with five others we were the first to be sent to the People's Republic of China for military training from 1961 until the end of 1962.
He said after the Rivonia arrests in 1963 and their sentence to life imprisonment on Robben Island, he was in the cell next to Madiba.
"I was prisoner 465/64, Madiba was 466/64," he said.
"With Walter Sisulu, Raymond Mhlaba, Ahmed Kathrada, Elias Motsoaledi, Govan Mbeki and Dennis Goldberg, we spent between 20 and 26 years of our lives in prison."
He said Madiba was held in high esteem by prisoners and jailers alike. "He always showed respect for all and in return he earned such respect," said Mlangeni.
Mlangeni, a long-serving MP, described Madiba as very persuasive, and someone who never gave up until his idea was accepted.
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