Desmond Tutu Calls It a Day
By Eric Sande
JOHANNESBURG---South African Nobel Peace Prize laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu yesterday bowed out from public duties as he celebrated his 79th birthday. He will remain a man widely considered as a moral compass in South Africa, admired for his integrity and adored for his infectious laugh, irrepressible and influential both in his native South Africa and on the global political stage.
"The Arch" - as he is known, used his church pulpit as a platform to help bring down apartheid. He was a prominent influence during the country's struggle against white minority rule thus described as the "conscience" of South Africa.
"The time has now come to slow down, to sip Rooibos tea with my beloved wife in the afternoons, to watch cricket, to travel to visit my children and grandchildren, rather than to conferences and conventions and university campuses," said Tutu.
Tutu says that he will not leave his job with his peace foundation and with a council of statesmen known as “The Elders.” But he confirms that he will resign from a university post and stop giving interviews to the media.
"For decades he has been a moral titan, a voice of principle, an unrelenting champion of justice, and a dedicated peacemaker. We will miss his insight and his activism, but will continue to learn from his example. We wish the archbishop and his family happiness in the years ahead," said U.S. President Barack Obama in a statement.
He said one of his life’s greatest moments was the honour of introducing Nelson Mandela as president for the first time.
Former President Mandela during his tenure, asked Archbishop Tutu in November 1995 to head a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Tutu’s experience in setting up the Truth and Reconciliation Commission led many governments and organisations to enlist his help for similar projects.
Saying as it is, Archbishop Tutu in the recent years has been an outspoken critic of Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe, saying he had become "a cartoon figure of an archetypal African dictator".
During the spike of ordination of gay bishops in the Anglican Church, he accused the Anglican communion of allowing its obsession with homosexuality to come before serious action to end world poverty.
"God is weeping" to see such a focus on sexuality, he said, adding that the Church was "quite rightly" seen by many as irrelevant on the issue of poverty.
The Nobel laureate was also central to international efforts to calm the political crisis which engulfed Kenya after the 2007 election.
The archbishop met the two rival political leaders, Raila Odinga and Mwai Kibaki, to help persuade them to talk.
A power-sharing deal was reached a month later, with the two party leaders agreeing to the formation of a coalition government. However, wrangling over government posts continued for months.