Nelson Mandela now out of the hospital

Johannesburg (CNN) Nelson Mandela
has been discharged from the Pretoria
hospital where he had been receiving
treatment since June, the South African
president's office said Sunday.
He will continue his recovery at home.
"Madiba's condition remains critical and is
at times unstable," President Jacob Zuma's
office said, referring to the revered leader's
clan name. "Nevertheless, his team of
doctors are convinced that he will receive
the same level of intensive care at his
Houghton home that he received in
Pretoria."
Mandela posters mark his
95th birthday
Mandela, 95, was hospitalized
June 8 because of a lung
infection. He marked his July
birthday at the Pretoria
hospital where he has been
surrounded by relatives.
"During his stay in hospital
from the 8th of June 2013, the
condition of our former
President vacillated between
serious to critical and at times
unstable," the office said.
"Despite the difficulties
imposed by his various
illnesses, he, as always,
displays immense grace and
fortitude."
There was some confusion
Saturday when two sources
close to Mandela said he had
returned home only to be
contradicted by the president's office,
which said he was still hospitalized.
"The family mistakenly thought Mandela
had been taken to his Johannesburg home
early Saturday morning," the source then
told CNN.
Why Nelson Mandela has six names
The frail icon has not appeared in public
for years, but he retains his popularity as
the father of democracy and emblem of the
nation's fight against apartheid.
Mandela became an international figure
while enduring 27 years in prison for
fighting against apartheid, the country's
system of racial segregation.
He became the nation's first black
president in 1994, four years after he was
freed from prison.
Mandela's impact extends far beyond
South African borders. After he left office,
he mediated conflicts in Africa and the
Middle East.
His history of lung problems dates to his
imprisonment on Robben Island, and he
has battled respiratory infections since
then.

posted from Bloggeroid