Archbishop Emeritus and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Desmond Tutu, died in Cape Town on Sunday.
He was 90.
His death was announced in a statement issued by South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, who described Tutu’s passing as another chapter of bereavement in South Africa’s farewell to a generation of outstanding South Africans who bequeathed a liberated nation.
“Desmond Tutu was a patriot without equal; a leader of principle and pragmatism who gave meaning to the biblical insight that faith without works is dead. A man of extraordinary intellect, integrity and invincibility against the forces of apartheid,” said Ramaphosa.
He noted that Archbishop Tutu was an iconic spiritual leader, anti-apartheid activist and global human rights campaigner.
Ramaphosa said Tutu was also tender and vulnerable in his compassion for those who had suffered oppression, injustice and violence under apartheid, and oppressed and downtrodden people around the world.
As chairperson of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, he articulated the universal outrage at the ravages of apartheid and touchingly and profoundly demonstrated the depth of meaning of Ubuntu, reconciliation and forgiveness, the South African leader noted.
“He placed his extensive academic achievements at the service of our struggle and at the service of the cause for social and economic justice the world over. We share this moment of deep loss with Mam Leah Tutu, the Archbishop’s soulmate and source of strength and insight, who has made a monumental contribution in her own right to our freedom and to the development of our democracy. We pray that Archbishop Tutu’s soul will rest in peace, but that his spirit will stand sentry over the future of our nation,” Ramaphosa said.
He is survived by his wife Leah Tutu and four children.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency