Pakistan: Mandela in the eyes of late Salmaan Taseer

Daily Times

People around the world paying tribute to Nelson Mandela following the news of his death brings to mind former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer’s words for the international icon of peace. The late Salmaan Taseer in some of his Twitter posts on November 14, 2010 had admired Mandela’s legacy of tolerance that formed the basis of South Africa’s democracy. “You can detain persons but u cannot arrest ideas which is why prisoners of conscience are always free,” the late Salmaan Taseer wrote. About PW Botha’s January 1985 offer to Mandela for a conditional release from the prison, the late Taseer had tweeted, “Interior Minister Botha said they release Mandela if he renounced terrorism 2 which the great man replied first Botha “renounce terrorism”.” “So they had 2 release Mandela on his own terms as the jailers had become the prisoners. A lesson in moral authority”. He had also tweeted, “I was in Faisalabad jail when Nelson Mandela was released & now feel the same elation & excitement at the news of Suu Kyi release”.