South Africa: Leaders around the world eulogize Desmond Tutu

Following the death of the south African icon and man of cloth who won the Nobel Price , here are some messages from leaders around the world.

PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA

“The passing of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu is another chapter of bereavement in our nation’s farewell to a generation of outstanding South Africans who have bequeathed us a liberated South Africa.

“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.”

THABO MAKGOBA, ARCHBISHOP OF CAPE TOWN

“Desmond Tutu’s legacy is moral strength, moral courage and clarity. He felt with the people. In public and alone, he cried because he felt people’s pain. And he laughed – no, not just laughed, he cackled with delight when he shared their joy.”

NELSON MANDELA FOUNDATION

“His contributions to struggles against injustice, locally and globally, are matched only by the depth of his thinking about the making of liberatory futures for human societies. He was an extraordinary human being. A thinker. A leader. A shepherd.”

JOHN STEENHUISEN, LEADER OF SOUTH AFRICAN OPPOSITION PARTY THE DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE

“A true South African giant has left us today, but his spirit will live on in the everyday kindness we South Africans show each other, and in our continued effort to build a united, successful, non-racial South Africa for all … When we lost our way, he was the moral compass that brought us back.”

UK DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER DOMINIC RAAB

“Sad to hear of the passing of Desmond Tutu. A truly great figure, who I had the privilege to meet in The Hague when he was working for the victims of war crimes. His adage, ‘Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument’, has never felt more apt.”

ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY JUSTIN WELBY

“Archbishop Desmond Tutu was a prophet and priest, a man of words and action – one who embodied the hope and joy that were the foundations of his life. Even in our profound sorrow we give thanks for a life so well lived. May he rest in peace and rise in glory.”

NORWEGIAN PRIME MINISTER JONAS GAHR STOERE

“A great little man who showed the power of reconciliation and forgiveness … Tutu’s point was that injustice and abuse must not be forgotten, but that at the same time it must not be avenged if a society was to move on.”

BERNICE KING, DAUGHTER OF MARTIN LUTHER KING

“I’m saddened to learn of the death of global sage, human rights leader, and powerful pilgrim on earth … we are better because he was here.”

BASIM NAEEM, SENIOR OFFICIAL WITH PALESTINIAN ISLAMIST MILITANT GROUP HAMAS

“Our Palestinian people lost a strong supporter of their march towards freedom and independence. Father Desmond Tutu spent his entire life struggling against racism and defending human rights and especially on the Palestinian land.”

“Father Desmond Tutu was one of the biggest supporters of the Palestinian cause. He had always advocated the rights of the Palestinians to gain their freedom and rejected Israeli occupation and Apartheid.”

WASEL ABU YOUSSEF, MEMBER OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANISATION

BRITISH BILLIONAIRE BUSINESSMAN RICHARD BRANSON

“The world has lost a giant. He was a brave leader, a mischievous delight, a profound thinker and a dear friend … He used his incredible moral courage to bridge divides and showed all of us how we have one common humanity.”

President Kenyatta

In a message of condolence to President Cyril Ramaphosa, the People of the Republic of South Africa, and the family of the departed Nobel Laureate, President Kenyatta mourned the ever-smiling Archbishop Desmond Tutu as an African icon of freedom, peace, and reconciliation.

“The passing away of Archbishop Desmond Tutu is a big blow not only to the Republic of South Africa where he leaves behind huge footprints as an anti-apartheid hero but to the entire African continent where he is deeply respected and celebrated as a peacemaker.

“Through his distinguished work over the years as a cleric, freedom fighter, and peacemaker, Archbishop Tutu inspired a generation of African leaders who embraced his non-violent approaches in the liberation struggle,” President Kenyatta mourned the former head of the South African Anglican Church.