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| David Lammy joins Haringey in honouring Oliver Tambo, anti-apartheid hero. |
| Thursday, 18 October 2007 |
Yesterday, Tottenham MP David Lammy attended the unveiling of a memorial in Haringey to the late president of the African National Congress and anti-apartheid leader, Oliver Tambo.
Oliver Tambo was a resident of Haringey after being forced into exile in 1960, and lived in the area for 30 years while he led the fight against apartheid in South Africa. A commemorative plaque was unveiled at the house in Alexandra Park Road, N22, where Mr Tambo lived with his wife Adelaide during this long exile from his homeland. When Nelson Mandela and other African National Congress leaders were in prison, it was Tambo who kept the anti-apartheid struggle going.
David Lammy said:
‘It is a moment of great pride for Haringey – especially in Black History Month – that we are able to honour such a man as Oliver Tambo. His time here inspired countless people in our Borough to join the struggle against Apartheid. This wonderful memorial will ensure that the legacy of the Tambo family lives on to inspire future generations of Haringey’s young people, as well as maintaining our strong local links with the new South Africa.”
The centerpiece of the memorial in the Albert Road Recreational Ground is a bust of Tambo by the now deceased Ian Walters, the sculptor whose statue of Nelson Mandela was unveiled in Parliament Square in the summer.
Haringey Council leader, Cllr George Meehan, added:
“The Memorial is, above all, to celebrate and commemorate the life of one of Africa’s greatest statesmen, who has been described by President Mbeki as the Liberator and Lodestar of the people of South Africa.”
The event was also attended by Rt Hon Peter Hain MP, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. During his youth, Mr Hain was an outspoken anti-apartheid activist. He said although Tambo may be less famous than Mr. Mandela, he kept the struggle going when Mr. Mandela and other African National Congress leaders were in prison.
Mr Hain said:
"Those of us involved in the anti-apartheid movement know he directed the struggle for freedom from here in this London suburb for over 30-years, because when the dark days of repression descended on South Africa in the early 1960s, he decided with the agreement of Nelson Mandela and the ANC leadership in South Africa to come abroad. Tambo was the leader while the rest of the leadership was in jail," he said.
The Secretary of State for Justice, Jack Straw MP, spoke on behalf of Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Mr. Straw said that although Oliver Tambo died a year before the first democratic elections in South Africa, his legacy will endure not only in South Africa:
"When Oliver Tambo was standing up for the rights of his countrymen and women, he was standing up for the rights of us all. When he refused to accept that all South Africans could not be free and full citizens, he refused to accept that every man could not live freely," he said.
Mr. Tambo's three children were also present.
His son Dali, who was only a year old when his parents moved to London, paid tribute to the people of Haringey, and of Britain:
"We longed for this day when we would return to Haringey. Having been home, return as free men and women, children of struggle for so long, but today citizens of a free non-racial democratic South Africa. And again we return, not just to unveil the bust, but to thank you as the citizens of Great Britain for your succour," he said.
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