Nelson Mandela in hospital for stomach ailment

SA

Mr Mandela was treated for a long standing abdominal complaint and is expected to be released from hospital by Monday, a government statement said.

His health has declined in recent years and he rarely appears in public. As the country’s first black president after a history of white minority rule, the BBC’s Abdrew Harding in Johannesbug says Mr Mandela occupies a special place in the hearts of South Africans.

 

The government requested that the former political turned anti-apartheid crusader be given privacy with his family. Mandela last appeared in public two years ago, during the 2010 World Cup held in South Africa.

In his earlier life, he was jailed for 27 years for a conviction for sabotage  against the government. Upon release, he went on to become the leader of the struggle against racist apartheid rule in SA. Culminating in his being elected president in 1994. He served one term and left public life in 1999.