As the Rainbow nation marked on Wednesday the 28th anniversary of its first democratic elections, Maharaj who spent more than a decade alongside Mandela in the Robben Island prison, warned of a tough times for South Africa.
S. Africa faces "conjunction of crises", Mandela ally Maharaj says
Anti-apartheid activist Mac Maharaj, 87, poses for a portrait in his house in Midrand, on March 31, 2022.
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Freedom Day which is locally celebrated on 27 April marks the day South Africa held its first fully democratic elections in 1994. It also marks the end of colonialism, of white minority rule and the establishment of a government headed by Nelson Mandela and a state subject to a new constitution.
The anti-apartheid activist said during an interview to the AFP the SA democracy was faced with “ a conjunction of different crises ”. The country grapples with graft, poverty and record unemployment issues.
If Maharaj led the ANC's underground operation during the struggle years, he regretted the ruling party had since fallen out of touch with the people.
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He then called the authorities to " draw lessons from […] mistakes " of the past with the vast experience accumulated in order to continue South Africa’s journey on the walk of freedom it took in 1994.