South Africa’s Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Dies At 81

Nomzamo Winifred Madikizela-Mandela‚ South African anti-apartheid campaigner‚ has died at the age of 81.

Winnie Madikizela Mandela was the former wife of South Africa’s first black president, Nelson Mandela.

The couple – famously pictured hand-in-hand as Mr. Mandela walked free from prison after 27 years – were a symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle for nearly three decades.

During Mandela’s time in prison‚ Madikizela-Mandela was not spared the reach of the apartheid forces. She was placed under house arrest and at one time banished to Brandfort‚ a town in the Free State.

In 1969‚ Madikizela-Mandela became one of the first detainees under Section 6 of the notorious Terrorism Act of 1967. She was detained for 18 months in solitary confinement in a condemned cell at Pretoria Central Prison before being charged under the Suppression of Communism Act of 1950.

Her family is expected to release a statement later today.

Sources: BBC and Times Live