Just £30,000 is needed to ensure the community project to create the statue is a success
A final push has been made for a statue of Nelson Mandela to be created in Glasgow.
Today (11 February), the 30th anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s release from prison, notable patrons of the Nelson Mandela Scottish Memorial Foundation (NMSMF) are backing its push for the final £30,000 needed to build a statue of the great African leader.
Campaign patrons Denis Goldberg, who stood trial with Mandela in 1964 and spent 22 years in prison; football legend Sir Alex Ferguson; Glasgow Lord Provost Philip Braat; and South African high commissioner Nomatemba Tambo have all added their voices to the appeal.
With £70,000 already raised, the campaign - which wants to see a people’s statue funded and owned by the community - is now looking to crowd-fund the balance of £30,000 over the next five months. The campaign will end on United Nations Nelson Mandela International Day on 18 July.
Brian Filling, chair of the NMSMF and Honorary Consul for South Africa in Scotland, said: “Fund-raising so far has included major events but also individual donations and initiatives like kilt walks and birthday and retirement donations. We have made major strides in setting up an education programme for schools and with this new five-month drive, we will be within shouting distance of at last making the statue a reality.”
Denis Goldberg said: “As a fellow Rivonia trialist sentenced to life imprisonment along with Nelson it was a wonderful feeling when he was finally released on 11 February 1990 and joined us in bringing an end to apartheid.
“I have very fond memories of Glasgow and its people from my many visits to Scotland following my release after 22 years in prison. The city’s support for our just cause will never be forgotten by us South Africans. As a patron of the Nelson Mandela Scottish Memorial Foundation I am encouraged by the educational work being done and its aim to create a permanent memorial to Nelson Mandela and the anti-apartheid struggle.
“I would also like to thank all of those in Britain who have supported my foundation’s project to build an arts and culture centre, House of Hope, in Hout Bay, near Cape Town, where I live. The House of Hope will bring together young people from different races and backgrounds and assist in overcoming the legacy of apartheid.”
Sir Alex Ferguson, who met Mr Mandela on three occasions, said: “Nelson Mandela was special. An example for the world to follow. For decades the ordinary people of Glasgow have played a terrific role in the anti-apartheid movement and as a Freeman of this great city I am proud to play my part in this campaign to honour a very special man.”
Lord Provost Philip Braat said: "It is a matter of great pride that Glasgow awarded Mr Mandela the Freedom of the City in 1981 while he was in prison - the first city in the world to do so.
“We know the importance of that because on his visit to Glasgow in 1993 Mr Mandela said: ‘While we were physically denied our freedom in the country of our birth, a city 6,000 miles away, and as renowned as Glasgow, refused to accept the legitimacy of the apartheid system, and declared us to be free.’
“I am delighted to support the Nelson Mandela Scottish Memorial Foundation in its drive to build a statue in Glasgow and associated education project to ensure the legacy of Nelson Mandela and this city’s historic role in the campaign against apartheid is never forgotten.”
Nomatemba Tambo said: “On this important anniversary as a patron of the Nelson Mendela Scottish Memorial Foundation I am pleased to support the Foundation's ambition to create a statue of Nelson Mandela and to educate future generations about apartheid and its crime against humanity.
“Glasgow has a special place in anti-apartheid history as the first city in the world to grant its freedom to Nelson Mandela. I have a special affection for Glasgow as the city hosted my father, O.R. Tambo, when he sent off the Freedom March to London from Glasgow Green in 1988 calling for the release of Mandela.”
Brian Filling was instrumental in bringing Nelson Mandela to Glasgow in 1993 to accept the freedom of Glasgow and eight other authorities. He also addressed the hundreds who gathered in Nelson Mandela Place on 11 February 1990 to celebrate Mandela’s release. So big was the crowd that the police had to close the street.
He said: “While Mr Mandela was in prison, many ordinary people in Scotland organised and acted to make sure the world would know about him and the fight against Apartheid.
“That’s why we want today’s generation to join us in raising the funds to make this statue one that they can see as theirs – a ‘people’s statue’ that they can call their own and to remind future generations of the key part Scotland played in taking action for human rights and challenging racism, and on taking action for a better world.
Donations to the campaign can be made online.
