By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo Credit: Reuters.
Department of Sports, Arts and Culture is trying to stop a controversial auction of 75 personal items belonging to anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela.
The 75 items belonging to Mandela – the country’s first democratically elected president who spent 27 years in jail for his anti-apartheid struggle against white minority rule – are to go under the hammer on February 22 in a deal between New York-based auctioneers Guernsey’s and Mandela’s family, mainly his daughter Makaziwe Mandela.
Makaziwe is Mandela’s daughter with his first wife, Evelyn Mase.
The department said it has filed an appeal to halt “the unpermitted export” of the objects.
“Former president Nelson Mandela is integral to South Africa”s heritage, “Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Zizi Kodwa said in a statement.
“It is thus important that we … ensure that his life’s work and experiences remain in the country for generations to come.” Mandela passed away in 2013.
The items include the late leader’s iconic Ray-Ban sunglasses and “Madiba” shirts, personal letters he wrote from prison, as well as a blanket gifted to him by former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.
A champagne cooler that was a present from former President Bill Clinton is also on the list, with bidding on it starting at $24,000. Among the items is also Mandela’s ID “book”, his identification document following his release from prison in the 1990s.
Last month, the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria gave the go-ahead for the auction after dismissing an interdict by the South African Heritage Resources Agency, which is responsible for the protection of the country’s cultural heritage.
On its website, Guernsey’s says the auction “will be nothing short of remarkable”, and that proceeds will be used for the building of the Mandela Memorial Garden in Qunu, the village where he is buried.
“To imagine actually owning an artefact touched by this great leader is almost unthinkable,” it says.
In an interview with US media published on Thursday, Makaziwe Mandela said her father wanted the former Transkei region where he was born and raised to benefit economically from tourism.
“I want other people in the world to have a piece of Nelson Mandela – and to remind them, especially in the current situation, of compassion, of kindness, of forgiveness,” she told the New York Times.
Reports of the auction have sparked heated debates on social media platforms in South Africa, with many criticising the auctioning of what they consider to be the nation’s cultural heritage.
Meanwhile another spat is brewing in the family of the late statesman, the assets of his ex-wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela are being auctioned by her daughter Zenani Mandela-Dlamini, leaving the family divided.
According to the City Press, the stalwart’s grandchildren are accusing their aunt, Zenani, of hiding their grandmother’s assets and sideling them.
The assets include her Soweto home, vehicles, sentimental artefacts, handbag and funeral contributions.
The anti-apartheid struggle icon died in 2018.
Grandson, Zondwa Mandela, has subsequently filed for an interdict seeking to stop the master of the high court’s process to place Zenani solely in control of the assets.
In his affidavit filed on 10 January, Zondwa claimed that, as a result of his mother Zindziswa’s passing, he and his two siblings became direct heirs of Mandela’s estate and were cumulatively entitled to 50% of it.
He further stated that the dispute arose in 2020 when he became aware of a letter addressed to the master of the high court by Zenani’s attorneys, requesting that she be made the sole executor.
In response, Zondwa’s attorneys wrote a letter to Zenani’s attorneys that same year, asserting his rights as a coexecutor.
The siblings instructed their attorneys to recognise Zondwa as coexecutor of the estate, replacing their late mother, and to safeguard their interests. They also requested a written undertaking that no assets will be moved.
Zenani’s lawyers refused to heed the request and plan to oppose Zondwa’s court application.
According to the publication, Zondwa claims Zenani and her lawyers have failed to wind up Madikizela-Mandela’s estate five years after her death.