Nelson Mandela Foundation
Tributes streamed in on Thursday for struggle stalwart, Denis Goldberg, who has died at the age of 87.
Goldberg, who was on trial for treason alongside Nelson Mandela and spent more than two decades in prison, died late on Wednesday night following a battle with cancer.
"His was a life well-lived in the struggle for freedom in South Africa. We will miss him," his family said in a statement.
The Nelson Mandela Foundation also paid tribute to Goldberg saying that he had dedicated his life to the struggle against apartheid and the building of democracy.
“He was a member of a generation of leadership which shaped the country’s history in profound ways.”
“In later years he challenged the direction our democracy was taking, initially critiquing the country’s macroeconomic policies and then challenging state capture during the years of cronyism and looting,” the Nelson Mandela Foundation said.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said; “This is a sad moment for our nation and a moment for all of us to appreciate Denis Goldberg’s brave dedication to our Struggle and his lifelong activism in the interest of – and in the physical presence of - poor and vulnerable communities around our country."
Goldberg spent a total of 22 years in jail before being released in 1985 and going into exile during which he worked for the ANC in London from 1985 to 1994.
He returned to democratic South Africa in 2002 and was appointed special adviser to then water affairs and forestry minister Ronnie Kasrils.
