South Africa mourns the passing of political stalwart Frene Ginwala

The African National Congress and South Africans are mourning the passing of struggle stalwart Frene Ginwala.

Ginwala, the first speaker of parliament served under former president Nelson Mandela, passed away on Thursday.

Labelled as one of the pre-eminent midwives to the country’s constitutional democracy, Parliament has mourned the passing of its founding Speaker, in a democratic South Africa.

Ginwala died on Thursday, at the age of 90, following a stroke two weeks ago and president Cyril Ramaphosa described her as a true patriot.

She was born on 25 April 1932 in Johannesburg in what was then the province of the Transvaal.

“Today, we mourn the passing of a formidable patriot and leader of our nation, and an internationalist to whom justice and democracy around the globe remained an impassioned objective to her last days,” said Ramaphosa.

“Among the many roles she adopted in the course of her life, [which] she led to the full, we are duty bound to recall her establishment of our democratic Parliament, which exercised the task of undoing decades-old apartheid legislation and fashioning the legislative foundations of the free and democratic South Africa.”

According to parliament’s spokesperson Moloto Mothapo, the 90-year-old stalwart was the most revered, courageous, and selfless revolutionary.

“As a torchbearer of our post-apartheid Parliament, Dr Ginwala was exceptional and instrumental in the formation of one of the most acclaimed democracies and one of the best constitutions in the world,” he said.

“Her pursuit for social justice and equality began at a very early age. Even as a child, Dr. Ginwala was conscious of the policies of colonial oppression and racial discrimination which, amongst others, denied children of her colour from attending certain racially exclusive schools.

“This did not sit well with her, and with the innocence of a child and boldness, confronted a principal of a whites-only school, demanding to know why she couldn’t be admitted into his school.”

Looking at her background, the veteran leader served South Africa between 1994 and 2004 as Speaker of the National Assembly and was awarded the Order of Luthuli in Silver in 1995.

It was during her tenure that saw Parliament adopting new democratic Constitution, pass a raft of progressive and transformative pieces of legislation to shape the future of the young democracy,” Mothapo said.

for her “excellent contribution to the struggle against gender oppression and her tireless contribution to the struggle for a non-sexist, non-racial, just and democratic society”.

Parliament’s presiding officers, National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and National Council of Provinces chairperson Amos Masondo, have also extended their condolences to Ginwala’s family, friends, and comrades – per News24.