The greatest symbol of ant-apartheid South Africa is gradually improving, however.
In a statement released to the press on Sunday, President Jacob Zuma said Mandela is making a “slow but steady improvement.”
Zuma expressed gratitude for residents of South Africa, as well as those around the world, for praying for the 95-year-old former president, who has been hospitalized since June 8 because of a lung infection and other complications.
The government refused to divulge details on Mandela’s sickness, citing privacy issues. Legal documents filed by the family of Mandela revealed that he was once on life support, although some family members have claimed that he has steadily improved. A number of relatives are in talks of Mandela returning soon to his home in Johannesburg but others have disputed those claims.