Katherine MacAlister talks to Maki Mandela about her father's life and work

Maki Mandela was seven years old when her father Nelson was imprisoned on Robben Island for his fight against apartheid.

“I could only engage with him through letters. We weren’t allowed to go to court – to his trial.

“And every child wants their father there while they are growing up. You want your parent around when you are going through the ups and downs of life,” she says.

Makaziwe Mandela, Maki for short, was born in 1954 to Nelson Mandela and his first wife Evelyn Mase, and Maki has spoken in the past about the difficulties of sharing her father with the nation and the world.

“Well he was away a lot,” she concedes. “Obviously he was in prison and often away galvanising other world leaders outside the country. But he was a part of the struggle and that was who he was and I have come to terms with that now.”

So when did she realise her father was important or significant? “I don’t think he ever felt that way. He just fought for a cause he believed in. He was determined to see it through and had the courage of his convictions. He would have died for the cause,” she explains.

Does she feel obliged to give us a greater insight into her father? “Every child of Nelson Mandela has a responsibility to continue his legacy, and it’s a wonderful legacy that he spread around the world by trying to create a better place and a better world,” she says.

“So I have not given up my time to do this. And neither did my father.

“It’s just part of our daily lives and part of the work you do. You have to feel passionately about what you do.”

Here to appear at Blenheim Palace Festival of Literature Film & Music today to talk about her father, his legacy and his art, she says: “The art is part of his story and part of his legacy and it does tell his story of South Africa,” speaking of his drawings of Robben Island and the famous Hand of Africa.

It is “years” since she has visited our shores.

And yet having helped organise his funeral, she says that coming to England has been a “real eye-opener” for her in terms of his fame here.

So does she feel compelled to continue his work? “He carried on the beliefs and traditions of his ancestors, their visions and customs, so what he achieved was a way of honouring them and we want to continue that legacy.

“But my father only wanted to create a better society and there is the potential in all of us to continue that. As human beings we all need to work to create a better society. That is our responsibility.”

As for South African politics, Maki says she doesn’t get involved. “I just want to make life better for ourselves and for others. Those are the choices I have made.

“It is important in a world where inequality still plays such a prominent part to keep trying to unite us. It takes a lot of courage to love and care for another human being, and sometimes I think we need reminding of that.”

GO ALONG
Dr Maki Mandela, eldest daughter of Nelson Mandela, talks to leading South African journalist John Battersby today at noon at Blenheim Palace Festival of Literature Film & Music. 

See blenheimpalaceliteraryfestival.com