Israel
SA: Use this as an opportunity for peace
DIRCO spokesman Clayson Monyela referred to Shimon Peres as a “rare breed of politician that allowed reason to transform his thinking”. The statement, issued within hours of the passing of Peres, suggested that Israelis and Palestinians could honour Peres’ legacy by continuing the work he started in Oslo as the architect of peace.
ANT KATZ
“As we remember Mr Peres, we call on both the Israelis and Palestinians to return to genuine negotiations in order to accomplish and realise the vision that Presidents Arafat, Rabin, and Peres started in Oslo more than 20 years ago. This will be a fitting tribute to the life and memory of President Peres,” said the SA Government today.
The Department of International Relations and Co-operation (DIRCO) said in their statement: “The world community woke to the sad news this morning of the passing on Wednesday of former President Shimon Peres of the State of Israel.”
Despite the fact that the former statesman “had been seriously ill over the past fortnight following his hospitalisation on September 13,” read the statement, “we still held out hope that he would recover.”
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“The people of South Africa were fortunate to have hosted him when he visited our country,” said Monyela and that the Government and the people of South Africa “join the world community in mourning the passing of this great Statesman and architect of peace.”
“President Peres is of the rare breed of politicians that allowed reason to transform his thinking on the question of Palestinian Statehood,” continued the statement, and that he would “be remembered for the leading role he played in the development and fruition of the Oslo Accord with the Late President Yasser Arafat and Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin for which they were deservedly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994.”