14 DAY TRIAL // Nelson Mandela passed away yesterday, at the age of 95. Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund were both deeply saddened by the news, and were quick to pay tribute to South Africa's first black president and offer their condolences to Nelson Mandela's family and friends.
Dr. Morné du Plessis, the current CEO of World Wildlife Fund South Africa, pointed out that Nelson Mandela not only promoted democracy and freedom across the country, but he also pushed for environmental protection.
For this, the organization is extremely grateful to him, Dr. Morné du Plessis stressed.
“Under his presidency, Mandela created the Cape Peninsula National Park which is home to one of the world’s seven wonders of nature, Table Mountain. This was of paramount conservation significance as the 30 000 hectares park protects the Cape Floral Kingdom,” the conservationist says.
“Tata Madiba has a very special place in the hearts of our network as he was presented WWF’s Gift to the Earth award in 1998,” he adds.
According to the World Wildlife Fund, the Cape Peninsula National Park is home to over 2,200 plant species, and many specialists consider it to be one of the most biodiverse regions in the world.
About 100 of the plants in this park are native to the area, and several of them are now threatened with extinction.
Kumi Naidoo, the current director executive of Greenpeace International, was also sad to hear that Nelson Mandela had passed away.
In a blogpost, Kumi Naidoo says that, together with Greenpeace members and supporters, he is mourning the loss of this great man, and that he is confident that the former president's legacy will live on.
“Nelson Mandela was never really a prisoner, but a free man always, and now, forever. As a South African, a comrade in the struggle to liberate my homeland from the evil of apartheid and a citizen of the world, my heart is heavy today. The loss was to be expected, but remains hard to bear,” Kumi Naidoo writes.
Furthermore, “The world has lost a true leader, a true father and a true inspiration. To say he lived a life of significance barely does it justice, and it is not over – he leaves a profound legacy of hope in a world still wracked by injustice and inequity. His inspiration will live on in my heart and in the hearts’ of people everywhere.”