Mandela filled vacuum of real political leadership in 20th century

South Africa's first black president Nelson Mandela was given a tearful state funeral in his childhood village of Qunu on Sunday, followed by a traditional burial attended by family and friends. A 21-gun salute and full military honour guard escorted Mandela's coffin to a marquee where 4,500 mourners said their final goodbyes. And, as Stephen Ellis, author of the book “Season of Rains: Africa in the World” and former editor of the African Affairs magazine, said in an exclusive interview with the Voice of Russia, Mandela became the leader for the generations to come.

-Mr Ellis, hello and thank you very much for joining the program. Now I'd like you to elaborate on Nelson Mandela's legacy. Why is it so important for the world years after his retirement from politics?

-Well, I think he made himself the world's most admired politician in the late 20th century and he didn't just mean something to the people of South Africa but to anybody who follows political affairs or even is just interested in current events anywhere in the world.

-Why were so many people including high ranking politicians willing to pay their final respects to South Africa's first black president and who do you think out of all of those invited or all of those who were guests both during the funeral and burial ceremony and during mourning ceremony throughout the week owe Nelson Mandela in this or that way more than others?

-There were many people who met him, very sincerely admired him so it is normal that also politicians would want to come and pay their last respects to him in his funeral. But he became as it were political gold dust. So people, active of aspiring politicians wanted to be seen with him because they felt that he transferred some of their glamour to them. And some of the newspapers here in the Netherlands for example and maybe elsewhere have been making the point that we seem to lack somewhat as clear political leadership in the world at present and he filled the vacuum for people who maybe were wanting to look up to somebody. So of the people who were present it's hard for me to say who were the people who he was really closest or for whom he had the greatest admiration but I think it's worth noting when he became president of South Africa in 1994 although he was very much embraced by the US president of the time – Bill Clinton, he insisted on hi right to visit and to praise and to be friendly with people like Fidel Castro of Cuba, Muammar Gaddafi of Libya, Yasir Arafat who we regard as fellow revolutionaries. He had no patience with western leaders who told him that he shouldn't be talking to people like that.

-And what is your take on the behavior of some of the guests?

You certainly heard that scandal about the UK PM and Barack Obama taking photos sort of selfy-style pictures during the mourning ceremony. And they even had to excuse themselves before the international media which was outraged by that behavior.

-Well, that is actually news to me because I was ill last week so I was in hospital and I've just come home from hospital. It means that I've missed a lot of the international coverage and I wasn't aware of what you've just told me. But of course taking pictures of yourself or having pictures of yourself taken under these circumstances at a time of great sadness and dignity is not a very smart thing to do. So if that is what they did they had to apologize for it. I think it's pretty stupid and reprehensible behavior.

- Mandela was a controversial figure for a much of his life denounced as a Marxist terrorist by critics and nevertheless gained international acclaim for his activism having received more than 200 honors including Nobel Peace Prize, US Presidential Medal of Freedom, even the Soviet Order of Lenin. His deep respect within South Africa often refer to as Madiba or Tata – Father. If there were like five words to describe Nelson Mandela – what would the five words be in your understanding? How would you describe Nelson Mandela, your personal take on this figure?

-I don't think I could do it in five words. He was immensely important and I think he was the only person who was capable of presiding over the transition from Apartheid to post-Apartheid government and bringing really all population groups with him. And I must say that certainly since his retirement and up to his death he was deeply respected even by former members of the National Party government. And he was genuinely respected by people from the far right because they can see the depth of his achievement.

-Mr Ellis, as an author of the book called Season of Rains: Africa in the World, how has Nelson Mandela changed Africa? How did he make it unique maybe more unique in a way or closer to other nations, closer to the West? How would you describe his role in introducing Africa to the world?

-I think as one of his opponents once said the former PM of Rhodesia Ian Smith:'Nelson Mandela is the first statesman that Africa has produced'. And I think that is probably right, he certainly is the greatest statesman Africa produced and somebody who will bear comparison with any of the great political figures of the 20th or so far the 21st century. So that in itself is an achievement. I think he showed the whole world what is possible even in the country with violent history like that of South Africa, that peaceful coexistence is possible and that is something that people have learnt from Africa and from the experience of South Africa. So in that sense indeed it's a universal story but one that happens to come from Africa which is a continent, which is very often being regarded as somehow lugging behind the rest of the world. I think finally I did notice a very interesting point made by former British PM Tony Blair, who said:' Nelson Mandela made racism seem not really immoral but stupid'. In other words before that time it would be impossible for people in the right wing to believe that racial politics was something realistic and even pragmatic and after Nelson Mandela it just seemed very backward and very old-fashioned to hold such a view.

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