Thanks Madiba, says Aristide

2004-08-13 13:29

Johannesburg, South Africa - Ousted Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and his wife Mildred paid a courtesy call Friday on former South African President Nelson Mandela.

"We just thanked him for what he did for Haiti and the entire world," Aristide told reporters after the brief meeting at the Nelson Mandela Foundation.

It was Aristide's first meeting with the anti-apartheid icon since being granted temporary asylum in South Africa at the end of May.

He fled his own country on Feb. 29 as rebels approached the capital, spending his first months in exile in Central African Republic and Jamaica.

Mandela has cut back significantly on public appearances since announcing his formal retirement in June to spend more time with his family.

Mandela, who has seemed increasingly frail and uses a cane to walk, was upbeat Friday.

"Just remember, I'm looking for a job," he joked, suggesting that the assembled journalists could teach him to be a photographer.

The former anti-apartheid leader spent 27 years in prison for his beliefs. He was elected South Africa's first black president in the historic 1994 elections that ended white-minority rule.

Since withdrawing from active political life in 1999, Mandela has remained in public demand, becoming a champion of the rights of children and HIV sufferers.

- AP