“Nelson Mandela now belongs to the ages”: Pres. Obama, others pay tribute to Madiba

* President Obama praised Nelson Mandela on
Thursday, saying the former South African
leader symbolized the fight for freedom and
dignity throughout the world.
“He achieved more than can be expected of
any one man,” said the nation’s first African-
American president.
Mandela now “belongs to the ages,” Obama
said at the White House within an hour of the
announcement of Mandela’s death.
In a statement on Mandela’s 95th birthday in
July, the president and first lady Michelle
Obama send best wishes to the former South
African president, and said his life has inspired
millions.
“May Nelson Mandela’s life of service to others
and his unwavering commitment to equality,
reconciliation, and human dignity continue to
be a beacon for each future generation seeking
a more just and prosperous world,” the
Obamas said.
Obama’s predecessors also paid tribute.
“President Mandela was one of the great forces
for freedom and equality of our time,” said
former President George W. Bush. “He bore his
burdens with dignity and grace, and our world
is better off because of his example.”
Ex-President George H.W. Bush said he and
wife Barbara “mourn the passing of one of the
greatest believers in freedom we have had the
privilege to know.”
The elder Bush said he “watched in wonder” as
Mandela “had the remarkable capacity to
forgive his jailers following 26 years of wrongful
imprisonment — setting a powerful example of
redemption and grace for us all.”