In mourning Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, the City of Cape Town will celebrate the life of a man who dedicated his life to making the country a more just, humane and peaceful place for all.
Tutu died on Sunday at the age of 90.
“As people here and around the world see Cape Town’s famous mountain lit up in purple, we hope it helps to remember and honour Cape Town’s greatest resident and all that he stood for,” said Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis.
“I hope also that the image will be a reminder to the world of the great challenges South Africa has overcome, of the great people who helped us to overcome those challenges, and that by following in The Arch’s example, every one of us can also make a positive difference in the world.”
Several events in South Africa are being planned to honor Tutu’s life.
South Africans are laying flowers at the cathedral in front of Tutu’s home in Cape Town’s Milnerton area and in front of his former home in Soweto.
“He knew in his soul that good would triumph over evil, that justice would prevail over iniquity, and that reconciliation would prevail over revenge and recrimination. He knew that apartheid would end, that democracy would come,” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said of Tutu in a nationally broadcasted address Sunday night.
Ramaphosa urges all South Africans to “pay respects to the departed and to celebrate life with the exuberance and the purpose of our beloved Archbishop. May we follow in his footsteps. May we too be worthy inheritors of the mantle of service, of selflessness, of courage, and of principled solidarity with the poor and marginalized.”
Sources: ABC News, News24
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Also read Archbishop Tutu’s body will lie in state at St George’s Cathedral on Friday
