Congress of South African Trade Unions (Johannesburg)
8 June 2001
Johannesburg — The late child South African Aids activist, Xolani Nkosi Johnson, will be buried tomorrow at Westpark Cemetery n the Johannesburg suburb of Emmarantia.
Nkosi, whose two families earlier this week resolved their differences over his burial, succumbed to a full-blown Aids last week Friday.
He has been living with the disease since his birth. Messages of praise from both locally and internationally have been flooding in to the family of the popular activist.
Former president Nelson Mandela said although it is sad to have lost Johnson, he has inspired the country because of his courage. In a statement released immediately after his death, COSATU expressed its "sincere and heart-felt" condolences to the family and relatives of the fallen hero.
"The federation would like to regard his departure as a celebration to the bravery, dedication and unwavering commitment he exhibited in the struggle against the HIV/Aids pandemic," said COSATU.
It said his plight, as well as his heroic and moving speech at the International World Aids Conference, contributed massively to the government's High Court victory against the international drug manufacturers.
"The strength and courage that he put during his eleven years of suffering from the disease, something that made him the longest surviving Aids kid, shall forever lie cherished in our memories as a symbol of hop and determination in the ongoing struggle against HIV/Aids," said the federation.
It further said that Johnson has inspired all people suffering form the disease.
COSATU's public sector union, Nehawu, said the impact his activism made in highlighting the nation's tremendous fight against Aids pandemic is "massive and almost unquantifiable."
"The gains we made with the PMA withdrawing from their case against government is a victory Nkosi contributed in as a young South African," said Nehawu.
Issued by Moloto Mothapo COSATU Communications Officer, Tel: + 27 + 11 + 339-4911 Fax: + 27 + 11 + 339-2281 E-mail: nowetu@cosatu.org.za.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2001 Congress of South African Trade Unions. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
