South Africa Bids Farewell to Ambassador Nathi Mthethwa at Special Official Funeral
Natalie Nyathi
South Africa is laying Ambassador Nkosinathi Emmanuel “Nathi” Mthethwa to rest today at his home in KwaMbonambi, northern KwaZulu-Natal. The 58-year-old diplomat, who served as South Africa’s Ambassador to France and Monaco, was found dead in Paris last week.
The circumstances surrounding his death are under investigation by French authorities, with initial reports suggesting a possible suicide after he fell from the 22nd floor of a hotel. According to Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau, Mthethwa stayed in a 22nd-floor room at the Hyatt Regency Paris Étoile. His body was discovered in the hotel’s inner courtyard by a security guard. His wife had reported him missing after receiving a distressing message from him the previous evening, in which he allegedly apologized and expressed his intention to end his life. French investigators noted that the window safety device appeared to have been disabled, with no clear signs of forced entry. However, the investigation remains open.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared a Special Official Funeral, Category 2, in honor of Mthethwa’s service to the nation. This entails ceremonial honors performed by the South African Police Service. The funeral service commenced at nine this morning at the Siyabonga Sangweni Sport Complex in Kwa-Mbonambi. President Ramaphosa will deliver the eulogy. The national flag will be flown at half-mast across the country until this evening.
Mourners unable to attend the service are able to follow the proceedings on local television stations and government digital and social media platforms.
Mthethwa’s body arrived back in South Africa on Friday and was welcomed with traditional family rituals.
Throughout his career, Mthethwa held several key portfolios, including Minister of Police, Minister of Arts and Culture, and Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture. He was appointed as Ambassador to France in December 2023.
Mthethwa was born on January 23, 1967, and became involved in the anti-apartheid movement at a young age. He joined the Klaarwater Youth Organisation at 15 and was later recruited into the ANC’s underground military wing, uMkhonto We Sizwe. After the ANC was unbanned, he held various leadership positions within the party.
As the nation bids a final farewell, Mthethwa’s former colleague and friend, Dr. Malusi Gigaba, emphasized the African National Congress’s responsibility to keep his memory alive.
“We have continuously talked about him to educate young people about his life, to interpret his life under current conditions so that young people are able to draw lessons from the type of person that he was,”said Gigaba.
ANC KwaZulu-Natal coordinator Mike Mabuyakhulu praised Mthethwa’s contribution to the party, calling him “one of the fine cadres that were produced by the African National Congress and, in fact, produced by the revolution itself , he was a thinker, he was an ideologue, he was a leader par excellence, but he was an educator more than anything else.”
