Pretoria
South Africa this week celebrated a decade of freedom since the end of apartheid with a spectacular party centered around the inauguration of President Thabo Mbeki for a second term. At least 40 heads of state attended the inauguration, including Zimbabwe’s dictatorial President Robert Mugabe, a longtime Mbeki ally. The Freedom Day celebrations marked the anniversary of the end of white racist rule and the election of Nelson Mandela as the country’s first black president. “Having served as the prime example of human despair, Africa is certain to emerge as a place of human hope,” Mbeki said in his inauguration speech. He pledged to devote his second term to addressing the poverty that still afflicts much of the nation’s black majority.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Amazon's James Bond deal could mean a new future for 007In the Spotlight The franchise had previously been owned by the Broccoli family for its entirety
-
Why are Republicans suddenly panicking about DOGE?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As Trump and Musk take a chainsaw to the federal government, a growing number of Republicans worry that the massive cuts are hitting a little too close to home
-
What is JD Vance's Net Worth?In Depth The vice president is rich. But not nearly as wealthy as his boss and many of his boss' appointees
