Mandela's grandson says South Africa inspired by Palestinians

By Faruk Hanedar

ISTANBUL (AA) - Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela, grandson of Nelson Mandela, said South Africa was inspired by the determination of Palestinians and so it brought their cause to the international community.

"We are continuously inspired by the steadfastness of Palestinians and we will certainly not disappoint them in carrying their stories and their pride to the international community," said the South African National Assembly member in an interview with Anadolu in Istanbul.

South Africa was the first country to ask the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to try Israel for genocide following the Oct. 7 attacks.

An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

"Well, for us South Africans, the Palestinian issue has always been close and dear to our hearts. The founding father of our nation's democracy, his Excellency President Nelson Mandela, who is my grandfather, when visiting Gaza in 1995, respectively in 1997, said and made a commitment to the Palestinians that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinian people," he said.

He added that South Africa continues to "champion causes" represented by the former president, including Palestine, as Nelson Mandela considered "the Palestinian struggle to be the greatest moral issue."

- 'We know very well that this case can drag for many more years'

Also serving as an envoy for the Global Return Campaign of Global Palestine, an umbrella organization supporting the Palestinian cause in the Arab world and globally, Mandela referred to the cases at the ICJ and the International Criminal Court (ICC).

"We have been able, as South Africa, to hold the Zionist usurping entity accountable by taking it for the first time in its 76 years of genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes and crimes against humanity."

"But we know very well that this case can drag for many more years, if not decades. And Israel, or the usurping entity, may continue acting without impunity. We have seen how they've attacked humanitarian aid workers and brutally killed some of them.

"And therefore, this for us needs to continue to be many more acts that will continue in advancing the Palestinian struggle. And this is why we are looking at broader avenues as to what we can be able to do. At the government level, we believe that the ICJ and the ICC is not the only avenue."

Mandela also emphasized the need for "reform” in global institutions.

"We need to look at how we bring about reform in the Security Council and how we bring about reform in the UN. We have seen that continuously, when a motion is brought within the UN, it is vetoed by one single member state who is enabling criminals to continue with the genocide, ethnic cleansing and war crimes and crimes against humanity," he noted.

Mandela underscored that the current situation cannot persist "without any counteraction," expressing the shared belief among many in the global South that there is a need to consider establishing a dedicated "structure or entity" focused on "multi-polarity."

- International Freedom Flotilla

Mandela highlighted the "International Freedom Flotilla" initiative for Gaza humanitarian aid, referencing boycotts and sanctions as tools to mobilize not only civil society worldwide but also South African liberation struggles.

He said the "Freedom Flotilla" is a movement toward implementing the decision of the ICJ for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza freely and reach Palestinians, and he works to achieve the goal of the Freedom Flotilla, breaking the siege and blockade on Gaza.

- ‘We know that the Western media has been collaborating with the Zionist entity to perpetuate these lies'

Mandela emphasized that Zionism can be defeated through collective struggle, pointing out that South Africa also freed itself from apartheid through a collective struggle that mobilized the entire global South.

He urged Palestinian groups to act together, stating that international organizations such as the Arab League should fully support the Palestinian cause, and at the same time, the 6 million Palestinians living in the diaspora should be at the forefront of their own liberation struggles.

Mandela pointed out that the momentum is beginning to turn in favor of the Palestinians through actions organized worldwide thanks to Palestinians transmitting news from Gaza as the voice of the international community.

He also noted that Israel's propaganda is beginning to be shattered.

"With the electronic intifada, we are able in real-time to get the news out of Gaza and out of the occupied territories in the West Bank to the entire global community.

"And this is why it is important for us to activate every Palestinian in the diaspora to be the frontline soldiers that will receive this news and share in their communities in their towns and cities and in countries they are in so that we can flood the entire global media with what is happening.

"We know that the Western media has been collaborating with the Zionist entity to perpetuate these lies. Some of the Western powers and leaders have actually come on public platforms perpetuating these lies. And we have not lost hope."

Mandela also expressed admiration for the "steadfastness of Palestinians" and pledged to continue sharing "their stories and pride with the international community."

*Writing by Gizem Nisa Cebi​​​​​​​