South Africa
Government to hold state memorial for FW de Klerk─── 09:43 Wed, 08 Dec 2021
Former President FW de Klerk
The government will host a state memorial service for the last apartheid president, FW de Klerk, at the weekend.
De Klerk died in November at his home in Cape Town, after a long battle with cancer.
He came to power in 1989 under apartheid, however, later became a key figure in the transition to democracy.
He ordered Nelson Mandela's release from prison, leading to the historic 1994 polls where the anti-apartheid leader became South Africa's first black president.
In a video shared shortly after De Klerk's death was announced, he said his views on apartheid had changed significantly since the 1980s.
However, some say it was too little too late.
