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President Mandela: A personal memory

Junaid Ahmad
IT was a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Minister Mac Maharaj, a prison-mate of President Mandela, and South Africa's minister of transport in the Mandela government, drove us to meet the president. It was a short ride from our house to the Houghton neighbourhood in Johannesburg where the President lived. My father, Mr. Muslehuddin Ahmad, was visiting South Africa at that time to establish a memorandum of agreement between North South University and the University of WitsWatersraand. Mac was acquainted with my father's work to establish the North South University and also his efforts to promote a dialogue between Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia. Mac felt that President Mandela would be interested to hear about these initiatives and about Bangladesh more generally.
President Mandela was seated in his study surrounded by his grandchildren. Having recently had surgery on one of his knees, he was resting that leg on a couch. On seeing us enter the room, the grandchildren immediately rushed out, probably used to having guests interrupt the precious time they had with their grandfather. My father quickly went over to where President Mandela was seated and reached out to greet him. President Mandela seemed to ignore my father's out-stretched hands, leaving him a bit perplexed. Instead, President Mandela moved over to shift his leg from the couch and with some effort to stand up. Only then, with the characteristic Mandela smile, did the president reach out to shake my father's hands and said warmly: "Welcome to my house, Mr. Ahmad." It is said that great people display their greatness often by the little things they do. That the president would make the effort to stand up to greet us, despite the pressure on his legs, spoke volumes about this great leader.
It was an afternoon that will forever be etched in my memory. President Mandela welcomed us with all the charm, grace, and magic for which he is well known all over the world. For over an hour the discussion covered a range of topics from the freedom movement of Bangladesh and South Africa to the role constitutional lawyers from India played in South Africa. President Mandela's deep knowledge of the law schools in the India and about the Indian legal system was very visible as he talked to us about how the ANG used the legal system as a strategy to take on the apartheid regime. In this context about Indian law schools, President Mandela welcomed my father's efforts to establish a relationship between Wits University and North South University. He was intrigued to learn about the role private universities were playing in Bangladesh. The president however wondered whether a private university system would be appropriate in a context where apartheid had made access to education so inequitable.
The discussion then settled on the issue that President Mandela wanted to focus on - the political situation in Bangladesh. He reflected on his visit to Dhaka during Bangladesh's celebration of its 25th year of liberation and the warm reception he received from the government and the people of Bangladesh. The president, however, expressed his concern that the divide between the political parties in Bangladesh and in particular between its two leaders - Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia - seemed too wide. Talking about South Africa's history and his
own approach to politics, President Mandela reflected on the importance of reconciliation in politics for the greater good of the nation. He spoke with respect and deep appreciation about Bangladesh's language movement and our fight against military oppression, but he touched us most by his concern for the future of Bangladesh. He wondered what it would take to forge an understanding between Bangladesh's political parties around a common view of democracy and reconciliation.
Both President Mandela and my father have now left this world for their final journey, and with them they have taken away their thoughts and views. But, one message was clear from their conversation: there could not be any substitute to democratic processes and that even a "flawed democracy" was superior to any other model of governance for a nation - a message with deep implications for Bangladesh.
The afternoon ended and we bade our farewell to President Mandela. I gathered enough courage to ask if we could take a picture with him. He smiled and said warmly: "If you want to upgrade my status," suggesting that it was he who was being honoured by having a picture with us! Minister Mac Maharaj took our picture. And, again, the dignity, grace and warmth of the president emerged. Despite the difficulty he had walking, he insisted on escorting us to the garden gate and to wish us
well. My father thanked the president for everything he represented. "No Mr. Ahmad," said President Mandela, "it is I who must thank you for the good work that you are doing for your country."
I had the opportunity to meet President Mandela several times after that meeting, including working with Minister Mac Maharaj on writing a speech for President Mandela when he agreed to become the Patron of the "Cities Without Slums" Initiative. It was, however, the last time my father had an opportunity to meet him. From that brief meeting, my father always considered President Mandela as Bangladesh's most sincere friend. I am eternally grateful to the president for the precious time he shared with us. And today, as we say good-by to President Mandela, I thank him again for that afternoon when he so kindly and generously honoured my father by receiving him at his residence. The memory of my father meeting the world's last super hero is something that my family and I shall cherish eternally. And so, even as you make your last journey, President Mandela, you still continue to selflessly give to others.
Thank you Madiba, and farewell.
The writer was working for the World Bank in South Africa during this visit with President Mandela.