20130513_zapiro

ZAPIRO'S CARTOON finds Mandela back in hospital, and a desperate South Africa is once again at his bedside hoping for a quick recovery. In spite of the ninety four year old former President's frailty, the nation (and much of the world) remain unprepared for the inevitable. Talk of Mandela's passing is frowned upon in polite company, and all but avoided in the media. Even this cartoon - tasteful and well intended as it is - was deemed too sensitive to publish by Zapiro's editors, who opted for an altered version instead. But the cartoon had already been posted online (by Africartoons and on the newspaper's website), and it immediately went viral, indicating a growing acceptance that sometime we will have to face the harsh reality of Mandela's mortality.

It is interesting to note that as cartoons featuring the life of Nelson Mandela were once censored by editors adhering to apartheid's stringent laws which prohibited the depiction of 'banned persons', so too are cartoons towards the end of his life which allude to his death censored - but for completely different reasons: Instead of being motivated by (apartheid's) fear of him, now the censorship has been motivated by a nation's deep love for Nelson Mandela.