May 12, 2003
By Lucille Davie
IN a rousing memorial at an almost-full Johannesburg City Hall on Friday, Walter Sisulu was fondly remembered and his life celebrated.
The podium was a celebration of colour, strewn with ANC, SACP, ANC Women's League and Youth League banners, and sitting formally behind a long table were the dignitaries. And sometime amongst the many songs, former president Nelson Mandela made his way into the Hall and took his seat alongside his wife, Graca Machel, and various members of the Sisulu family, in the front row. So surreptitious was his entry that MC Vincent Smith had to apologise halfway through the proceedings for not noticing and announcing Mandela's entry, which was greeted with much applause and cheering.
But this was not a real distraction from a ceremony that was sprinkled with praise for Sisulu: "an extraordinary man", "a giant amongst giants", "his spirit lingers on", "utter selflessness", "sharp mind and quick thinker", "a child of our struggle" and "last one of our great leaders".
He died at the age of 90 on Monday, 5 May, in his Linden home, surrounded by his family. He encouraged Mandela to become a lawyer in the 1950s, and their friendship of 62 years has left Mandela grief-stricken.
Sisulu, from humble beginnings and with only six years of formal education, distinguished himself within the ANC as the first secretary general, and continued to be an inspiration for many others, even while serving 26 years on Robben Island, from which he was released in 1989.
There was a long list of speakers at the event. Johannesburg speaker of the council Nandi Mayathula-Khoza talked of how Sisulu "lived an ordinary life" but how he would now join heroes like Oliver Tambo and Albert Luthuli.
Lallo Chiba, who spent 17 years on Robben Island with Sisulu, described him as "simple, modest and dignified" and a "father, friend and comrade".
Cosatu General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi described him as an "unassuming, ordinary person". He called on management across the country to allow all workers to join hands and bow their heads for five minutes of silence on Wednesday, 14 May, as a respectful gesture in memory of Sisulu.
Women's League member Bertha Gxowa described how she started working with Sisulu in 1952 when she joined the Defiance Campaign. She said that the Women's League would not exist today if it hadn't been for the support that Sisulu gave it in its early days.
"The atmosphere around the country now since his death is like that when the Freedom Charter was being organised [in 1954/55]," she said, to many cheers. She described how everyone was talking about Sisulu and his legacy, like the excited buzz that was created in the build-up to the signing of the Charter.
She concluded by saying that "we must never allow anyone to be suppressed again".
The ceremony was concluded by tributes from two cabinet ministers. Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula said what many people seemed to be feeling in the Hall: "We are celebrating the life of this great leader, not mourning his death."
Minister of Justice Penuell Maduna echoed these sentiments: "There is a sense of loss shared by all of us. This is not a moment for mourning, but rather for celebration, reflection and thanksgiving."
Maduna said of Sisulu: "We are eternally grateful to you for having made the choice that you did."
The two-hour ceremony was interspersed with the audience standing, clapping and singing praises to Sisulu. One of them was:
Walter Sisulu, Walter Sisulu, ha ho na ya tshwanang le wena
Walter Sisulu, Walter Sisulu, there is no one like you.
