Nelson Mandela, the man who led South Africa out of apartheid and became the nation’s first black president, has died aged 95.
Mandela, who was elected as president after spending nearly three decades in prison, died from complications from his lung infection, with his family by his side.
A revered icon in the anti-apartheid struggle, one of his closest friends in the struggle was Greek born and South African human rights lawyer George Bizos.
Bizos is credited as being the one who persuaded Nelson Mandela to change the wording of his defense when he was faced with the death penalty in 1964, charged by the apartheid regime with plotting the violent overthrow of the white government. Bizos’ advice in Pretoria worked and led to Mandela’s imprisonment and not execution.

“Greece is the mother of democracy and South Africa is its youngest daughter” – Nelson Mandela

*In early 2010, editor-in-chief Sotiris Hatzimanolis interviewed George Bizos about his work with Mandela. Read more in this Saturday’s (Sat 7 Dec) bilingual edition of Neos Kosmos.