Wellington/New York/The Hague

On behalf of Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA), a non-partisan network of over 1,000 legislators in 131 countries worldwide, I wish to express our heartfelt condolences to the Parliament and all the People of South Africa on the death of former President Nelson Mandela.

Our thoughts are with his family and friends in particular at this sad time.

We recall, with great pride and fondness, the participation of a delegation of PGA members as Observers in the 1994 Elections in South Africa and our continued close cooperation with many Members of Parliament of South Africa in the past 20 years, including a Workshop we organized together with the Pan-African Parliament outside of Johannesburg only two months ago.

No other nation has had the good fortune to have had a leader, a statesman, and a father figure, as Nelson Mandela has been to, and for, South Africa. In a world where, tragically - and with impunity - too many despots and dictators still wreak their havoc, Nelson Mandela, in stark contrast, stood out as a shining, and now eternal, beacon of light.

Nelson Mandela reminded us how humility and kindness are among the greatest attributes of true and enduring leadership. For those who mistook his courtesy for cowardice, they were left only to rue their ignorance. For others who, in his kindness, saw only weakness, they too consigned themselves to mere footnotes of history.

Nelson Mandela was not only a father figure to his own country – helping it to navigate through the very turbulent waters of the past 60 years. He was also a leader for the world.

His indomitable spirit inspired millions of others in far flung corners of the globe, desperately seeking a better life for their own people and countries too. His remarkable dignity in rising above the wrongs of apartheid was a powerful force in uniting his badly fractured people and nation.

Nelson Mandela may, today, have departed the world in which we live. By his example, however, his life, his accomplishments, and the unconditional love for his people that so infused all he did, Nelson Mandela will forever serve as an example for generations of future leaders.

We mourn the passing of Nelson Mandela. But we also celebrate his greatness, his kindness, his humility and, above all else, the extraordinary legacy that he has left behind – the affirmation of the human spirit.