Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (born September 26, 1934 or 1936 as Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela) is the ex-wife of former South African president and African National Congress (ANC) leader Nelson Mandela. She is also a significant politician in her own right, having held government positions and headed the ANC Women's League. A controversial figure, she is known to her supporters as 'Mother of the Nation' and is popular because of her activism, yet reviled by others for her controversial actions.

Early years

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Her Xhosa name is Nomzamo. Traditionally Xhosa names carry significance; Nomzamo means "trial", seemingly appropriate to the trials she has undergone. She was born in the village of Bizana, in the Pondo region of what is now South Africa's Eastern Cape Province. She held a number of jobs in various parts of what was then the Bantustan of Transkei, including with the Transkei government, living at various times in Bizana, Shawbury, and Johannesburg.

Education

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Despite restrictions on education of blacks during Apartheid, her wealthy background allowed her to escape many of the hardships of the period; she earned a degree in social work from the Jan Hofmeyer School in Johannesburg, and several years later earned a bachelor's degree in international relations from the University of Witwatersrand, also in Johannesburg.

Apartheid

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She emerged as a leading opponent of the white minority rule government during the latter years of her husband's long imprisonment (August 1962 – February 1990). For many of those years she was exiled to the town of Brandfort in the Orange Free State and confined to the area except for the times she was allowed to visit her husband at the prison on Robben Island.

Her reputation was damaged by what many considered her sometimes bloodthirsty rhetoric, the most noteworthy example of this being a speech she gave in Munsieville on April 13, 1985, where she endorsed the practice of necklacing in the struggle to end Apartheid. She said, "with our boxes of matches and our necklaces we shall liberate this country".

Further tarnishing her reputation were accusations by her bodyguard, Jerry Richardson, that Winnie Madikizela-Mandela ordered him to abduct and kill 14-year-old ANC activist James Seipei – otherwise known as Stompie Moeketsi – in January 1989.

In 1991 she was convicted of kidnapping and being an accessory to assault in connection with the death of Moeketsi. Her six-year jail sentence was reduced to a fine on appeal.

Post-Apartheid

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During the transition from Apartheid she appeared to adopt a less conciliatory attitude than her husband toward the previously dominant white community. The Mandelas' 38-year marriage ended in separation (April 1992) and divorce (March 1996). She then adopted the surname Madikizela-Mandela. Appointed deputy minister of arts, culture, science and technology in the first post-Apartheid government (May 1994), she was dismissed eleven months later following allegations of corruption.

She remained popular among many ANC radicals, and in December 1993 and April 1997 she was elected president of the ANC Women's League, though she withdrew her candidacy for ANC deputy president at the movement's Mafikeng conference in December 1997.

In 1997 she appeared before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Desmond Tutu as chair of the commission recognised her importance in the anti-apartheid struggle but also begged her to say sorry and to admit her mistakes. In a guarded response, she echoed his words, admitting that 'things went horribly wrong'.

Fraud conviction

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On April 24, 2003, she was found guilty on 43 counts of fraud and 25 of theft, and her broker, Addy Moolman, was convicted on 58 counts of fraud and 25 of theft. Both had pleaded not guilty to the charges, which related to money taken from loan applicants' accounts for a funeral fund, but from which the applicants did not benefit. Madikizela-Mandela was sentenced to five years in prison (see ^*).

Shortly after the conviction, she resigned from all leadership positions in the ANC, including her parliamentary seat and the presidency of the ANC Women's League (see^*).

In July 2004, an appeal judge of the Pretoria High Court ruled that "the crimes were not committed for personal gain". The judge overturned the conviction for theft but upheld the one for fraud, handing her a three years and six months suspended sentence (see ^*).

Living people | Anti-Apartheid activists | Diabetics | South African politicians

Winnie Mandela | Winnie Madikizela-Mandela | Winnie Mandela | Winnie Mandela | Winnie Mandela | Winnie Mandela