No Letup in Lines for a Final Glimpse of Mandela

South African viewing the former President Nelson Mandela lying in state at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. Mandela passed on December 5, 2013., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.

December 12, 2013

No Letup in Lines for a Final Glimpse of Mandela

By NICHOLAS KULISH
New York Times

PRETORIA, South Africa — From across South Africa and around the world, tens of thousands of people waited under a blazing summer sun on Thursday for a chance to bid farewell to Nelson Mandela on the second of three days his body was lying in state here.

Lines coursed for blocks and blocks around downtown Pretoria while others grew at three park-and-ride facilities set up by the city government. A spokesman for the city, Selby Bokaba, said that more than 20,000 people had been transported on Wednesday to the Union Buildings, to see the body, and another 20,000 had already lined up by late morning on Thursday.

“People need to stay calm and be patient,” Mr. Bokaba said, adding that more than 80 buses were ferrying well-wishers to the site. “This is not an ordinary person we’re talking about, but a world icon who is revered around the globe.”

Troels Hansen, 41, said that he booked a flight from Denmark as soon as he heard that Mr. Mandela had died. “In my whole lifetime, we’ll not have a guy like that again,” said Mr. Hansen, who also attended a memorial service at a soccer stadium in Soweto on Tuesday. “I feel honored to be a part of it.”

Mr. Mandela died a week ago. In the days since, numerous memorials, commemorations and prayer services have taken place — some official, like the gathering of heads of state and government in the soccer stadium, others spontaneous outpourings on the streets, beginning the moment his death was announced.

In Cape Town, about 50,000 people were estimated to have attended a rock concert on Wednesday night in Mr. Mandela’s honor.

In Pretoria, many mourners seeking to view Mr. Mandela’s coffin were turned away on Wednesday after waiting the entire day to catch a glimpse of his body. People used umbrellas over the two days to ward off the blazing sun as they stood in line, some from as early as 4 a.m.

Mr. Mandela was lying in state at the place where he was inaugurated in 1994 as South Africa’s first black president: an amphitheater at the Union Buildings overlooking the leafy capital city below. On Thursday, ushers waited beyond the coffin with tissues for visitors overcome with grief as they broke down after brief but final farewells.

When the viewing finishes on Friday, Mr. Mandela’s body will be transported to his childhood home in Qunu in the Eastern Cape region, where he will be buried on Sunday.

Phontsha Mary Mphaki, 64, was among the throngs of South Africans who said goodbye on Thursday. She rested under a tree on the hillside in front of the Union Buildings, her black sandals beside her on the grass.

“A young girl in a police uniform came and said, ‘Mama, we’re taking the oldest people out,’ ” said Ms. Mphaki, and helped her move up in line. She said that she was glad that Mr. Mandela was no longer suffering after the long illness that preceded his death.

“We think of him as a great man, but we forget also that he’s in pain,” she said. “Now he’s at peace.”