2 May 2013

Outrage over Mandela image

5:30 am on 2 May 2013

A video of a frail looking Nelson Mandela surrounded by President Jacob Zuma and other officials has prompted outrage in South Africa.

In the footage, Mr Mandela, 94, sits in a chair at his Johannesburg home on Monday, barely moving and never smiling as leaders from the governing African National Congress arranged themselves for a photo opportunity.

CNN reports the ANC and the South African Broadcasting Corporation have been accused of parading Mr Mandela for their own benefit.

''No normal human being would do anything like that to an old man," said political commentator Palesa Morudu.

Mr Mandela returned home on 6 April after 10 days in hospital for a recurrent lung infection.

ANC spokesman Jackson Mthembu defended the visit:

"We wanted to share Madiba in his frail state ... to show the people of South Africa and the world that he is still with us," he said.

"He is no longer a younger man, he will soon turn 95 years old and he looks like any other person his age."