Pretoria: The image of 93-year-old Nelson Mandela will appear on South Africa's new currency notes to mark the 22nd anniversary of the anti-apartheid icon's release from prison. "On behalf of Government and the people of South Africa, it is my honour and pleasure to announce that the new South African bank notes will bear the image of President Mandela, the President of a free, democratic South Africa," South African President Jacob Zuma said at the Reserve Bank headquarters.
He said that Mandela's release in 1990 after 27 years in prison for fighting apartheid "marked the beginning of a new era of hope for our country and the world".
Zuma described Mandela, the country's first democratically elected president, as an "outstanding leader and patriot" that represented a group of exceptional men and women who demonstrated their love for South Africa in a time of repression.
Reserve Bank Governor Gill Marcus said Mandela, who does not make any public appearances since his retirement to his home village in Qunu, had been informed and was "delighted" about it....
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02:23 PM, Feb 12, 2012
