Johannesburg - President Cyril Ramaphosa has paid homage to the veteran activist Lindiwe Leah Aida Myeza who died on Tuesday.
The Presidency said she would be remembered for her distinguished work as an anti-apartheid activist who built capacity among young people and women.
Presidency spokesperson Khusela Diko said Myeza cared for youth and women in the wake of the Sharpeville massacre of 1960; the South African Women in Dialogue programme and, as Vice President of the South African Council of Churches. She said the council made efforts to bring together churches which were racially segregated during apartheid.
In 2006, former president Thabo Mbeki bestowed Myeza, who was 85 at her time of death, with the Order of the Baobab. In awarding her with the order, she was described as “an icon representing bravery, resourcefulness and selflessness".
Ramaphosa said: “We have lost a special veteran of our Struggle, and a veteran of the rebuilding of various communities and sectors of our society who had been subjected to the worst effects of apartheid.
“Mama Lindi’s passing in our nation’s hour of need during the Covid-19 national disaster reminds us forcefully to embrace her values of compassionate and selfless care.
“Her values and her tireless conversion of these values into action created a better future for generations of South Africans. We miss her dearly but will honour her with our commitment to and action for an inclusive society centred on securing the wellbeing of the most vulnerable people in our midst.