As part of the celebrations to mark the 89th birthday of Madiba Nelson MANDELA on 18 July, FIFA will honour the football-playing former inmates of South Africa's Roben Island prison. FIFA boss Sepp BATTER will grant honorary membership status to the Makana Football Association, which was formed by prisoners on the island during the apartheid era.
The ceremony will take place on Roben Island where MANDELA, the most famous captive of the island spent 18 of his 27 years in captivity. It will kick-off a few hours before the start of the "90 Minutes for Mandela" match between an 'Africa XI' and a 'Rest of the World XI' at Cape Town's Newlands Stadium.
BLATTER looks upon Madiba as "the world's most powerful symbol of non-racialism." He added: "While in confinment on the island, political prisoners organised matches as members of the Makana Football Association, adhering strictly to the FIFA Statutes. They are a strong symbol of FIFA's fight to eradicate racism and all forms of discrmination from football and sport, and it is only fitting that their efforts be recognised with this honorary membership."
Samuel MBAJUM
(Source: BBC Sport)
06/07/2007 |
