How can he NOT be in attendance?!

Given the symbolism and magnitude of the occasion and the fact that he invested his not inconsiderable charm in bringing Africa's first World Cup to South Africa, it would be hugely disappointing if Madiba did not grace us with his presence at the opening and closing ceremonies of the tournament. Granted he's very frail now and goodness knows, he's more than earnt his right to a quiet retirement, but we would hope that Madiba has the final say on his appearance next Friday.

"A saint is a sinner who got up and walked"

, are the measured words of Nelson Mandela according to his wife, Graca Machel. As mankind's moral compass, Madiba inspires us to seek out the humanity that lies within us all. Obviously, some people need more persuading than others, but the manner in which he lives his life without rancor, despite the trials and tribulations he endured, is a salutary lesson for us all.

I think it was JFK who said, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country" and didn't Madiba do for South African and then some!! He sacrificed his family, his health and his middle ages. Having seen his cell on Robben Island, I wondered how he had managed to stay sane through the dark times. We visited the quarry where he had to dig limestone and even though we were in a bus with tinted the windows, the glare off the rocks was very apparent - the damage to his eyes is testament to that. But throughout it all, he maintained the dignity of his royal lineage as his oppressors sought to demean him and his people.

Last night, in Berlin, we were honoured to be addressed by Denis Goldberg, Madiba's comrade-in-arms and who also endured a lengthy spell of incarceration. The evening ended with a showing of the film, Drum, and even the rain that fell as the credits rolled could not put a dampener on things.

To the man who continues to challenge us to seek out the good within ourselves and who even in his twilight years persists in illuminating a world that is morally and ethically bankrupt,

HAPPY 90TH BIRTHDAY Madiba!!

Churchill, Disraeli and Nelson

Winston Churchill, voted the Greatest Briton in a 2002 BBC poll, and Benjamin Disraeli, Britain's only Jewish Prime Minster and the man who did much to lift Queen Victoria's spirits after the death of her beloved Albert in 1861, are to be joined in bronzery by Nelson Mandela, freedom fighter turned statesman, in Parliament Square, after Westminster Council finally agreed on a home for the latter's statue. The Mayor of London, Ken Livingston, had wanted Mandela's statue to be erected in Trafalgar Square, facing South Africa House, the site of numerous anti-apartheid and free Mandela rallies.

....we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.... - Winston Churchill, 4 June 1940

...During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die. - Nelson Mandela, 20 April 1964

Sport as a unifying factor

The living saint that is Nelson Mandela reminded us just how unifying sport can be when he donned a Springbok rugby jersey for the 1995 World Rugby Cup Final, between South Africa (Springboks) and New Zealand (All Blacks), at Ellis Park in Jo'burg. Up until that moment, the Springbok rugby jersey had mostly negative connotations for the majority of South Africa's black population. But the sight of their President wearing the no 6 jersey in support of Francois Pienaar, the South African rugby captain, served to unite the entire population of South Africa behind their team. This culminated, some 80 minutes later, in an improbable victory for South Africa when Joel Stransky kicked a drop goal in the dying minutes and won the game for the host nation, 15-12. The much vaunted Jonah Lomu, who had single-handedly destroyed England in the semi-finals was effectively neutralised. The All Blacks later spoke about how herculean their task seemed because they weren't just playing against 15, it was 15 against 43 million.

When Madiba later thanked Francois Pienaar for captaining the South African team to World Cup glory, the latter poignantly responded, "it is we who should be thanking you".

Didier Drogba of Chelski and Ivory Coast, recently crowned 2006 African Footballer of the Year took his prize on a tour of his war torn country and made an appeal for peace - he was cheered by both opposing factions. Similarly Liberian George Weah, 1995 FIFA World Player of the Year, European Footballer of the Year and African Footballer of the Year, drew on his countrywide appeal to run for the Liberian presidency in 2006.

Even amidst the unprecedented savagery of World War I, the British and Germans put the war on hold for a day, to play a football match on Christmas Day 1914. Pele managed to stop the Biafran war in Nigeria for 2 days because both sides wanted to see him play.

So how about we stop the warring and go out and play some football.