Pandor calls on leaders to be good 'troublemakers' like Madiba
Former International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor delivering the keynote address at the official UN commemoration of Nelson Mandela International Day in New York on Friday. Picture: Nelson Mandela Foundation.
As South Africans marked Nelson Mandela Day on Friday, former International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor called on world leaders to follow in the steps of Madiba by being 'good troublemakers.'
Pandor delivered the keynote address at the official UN commemoration of Nelson Mandela International Day in New York on Mandela Day.
'Mandela a troublemaker'
Speaking in her role as the chairperson of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, Pandor reflected on Mandela's life, his values, and the kind of world he envisioned.
'While we all, with great affection, refer to President Mandela's first name as 'Nelson', the name that he was actually given at birth was 'Rolihlahla'. In isiXhosa, which was Mandela's mother tongue, the colloquial meaning of Rolihlahla is 'troublemaker''.
She explained that while 'Rolihlahla' directly meant 'shake the tree', the isiXhosa name given to Madiba was 'troublemaker.'
'Mandela was a troublemaker. The kind of good troublemaker that we need more of in the world today, and the kind that we will continue to need well into the future. The kind of troublemaker that some people did not always love because he pushed for an equality that we should all enjoy and for the overcoming of a system of oppression which was called convenient and profitable to some,' said Pandor.
As South Africans marked Nelson Mandela Day on Friday, former International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor called on world leaders to follow in the steps of Madiba by being 'good troublemakers.' #MandelaDay @TheCitizen_News pic.twitter.com/StEWOa9Hqx — 𝙵𝚊𝚒𝚣𝚎𝚕 𝙿𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚕 ⚡️ (@FaizelPatel143) July 20, 2025
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'Fierce man'
Pandor said Mandela was a fierce man on matters of justice.
'He pushed for a kind of equality and the overcoming of a system of oppression that was convenient and profitable to some, a system that was defeated in South Africa, but which has yet to be eradicated globally.'
SA's freedom
Pandor told guests, including United Nations (UN) Secretary General António Guterres, about the role the UN played in South Africa's struggle for freedom.
'The United Nations steered us to freedom, stood against apartheid domination not through arms, but through bringing its undeniable moral weight into combat against injustice. That boldness, that courage is needed more and more today, and we hope as we remember and honour President Mandela, we recall his words, 'It is in your hands.'
What would Madiba say?
Pandor said the Nelson Mandela Foundation, which she now chairs, often gets asked what Mandela would say or do on certain issues if he were alive today.
'We, too, ask this question of ourselves. In the context of my call here today, the question arises – What kind of world would he be prepared to make good trouble for? Drawing on his life and work, and personal reflections, we believe that it would be a just world.
'A world where justice does not kneel to the rich and powerful; where our collective upliftment takes precedence over individual privilege; where the benefits and burdens of our society are equally shared; where our privilege and personal biases do not sway us from being just; and where our like or dislike of someone does not hinder us from doing what is right in relation to them. This is the kind of world that we need to make good trouble for,' Pandor said.
ALSO READ: WATCH: 'SA showing world we have embraced constitutional democracy' − Pandor
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