The powerful images following the death at the age of 95 of former South African President, Nelson Mandela, has evoked many memories of those fortunate enough to have met the statesman.

With tributes flooding in from around the world, a number of local people had their own memories of meeting him.

Among them was former Miss Northern Ireland, Shauna Gunn from Newtownbutler, who met President Mandela in 1995 when South Africa hosted the Miss World competition at which Shauna took part.

Another was James Cooper, an Enniskillen solicitor and former Chairman of the Ulster Unionist Party, who together with the UUP Leader, David Trimble, in 1997 was on a a visit to Capetown for inter-party talks convened by the ANC.

Mr. Cooper this week recalled flying out to Cape Town with his UUP colleagues to a military air base.

“We were enscounced on the southern tip of Africa from where there was no escape. We were not allowed out,” he recalled.

Nelson Mandela had arranged for four ANC Cabinet Ministers to stay with the party representatives but their surprise was when the President himself arrived on their final day.

“He was clearly knowledgeable in the Northern Ireland process and he was very keen we should learn from the ANC and listen to how they solved their differences. The talks were very well organised and it was clear that he was at the heart of it,” said Mr. Cooper.

“He was very charismatic and the party members went into a scrum to be photographed with him. He spent half an hour with each of the delegations and then a joint meeting at the end.” Mr. Cooper said that while they had not made much progress that particular weekend in South Africa, the experience inspired everyone to find a solution and he felt a lot of barriers had been broken as a result of the South African experience.

“He(Nelson Mandela) had a clear understanding of the situation and felt that with hard work we could reach agreements and to be fair to him that’s what happened. Although not all participants shared that view.

“It was a very inspiring trip and that was an extraordinary afternoon with Mandela.

“He was extremely relaxed and didn’t show the trappings of power and did not require to be surrounded by bodyguards. He had an air that he was very comfortable with his own being. The ANC Ministers were impressive enough but he was in such a different status and completely dominant,” he said.

He believed that Mandela’s political astuteness was ahead of its time.

“He was a man of the people and he had that approach to everything.” Fellow Ulster Unionist, Sam Foster, who was Environment Minister in the Stormont Executive, between 1999 and 2002, met and shook hands with Nelson Mandela during one of his visits to Dublin in 2000.

This week, Sam said, “I had the privilege of meeting and shaking hands with Nelson Mandela along with David Campbell, Chairman of the UUP at the time. I was representing the UUP in Dublin during the early days of the Belfast Agreement.

In those days it was UUP’s belief that Nelson Mandela was too close to the Republican influences but Mr. Foster said he was privileged to have had the opportunity for this occasion. He said he found him enthusiastic but stressed the importance of trust, honesty and integrity as vital components for peace to work.

Also this week, Tony Brady, Chairman of the Fermanagh Writers, spoke powerfully of an experience in London when he was a visiting Social Security Officer to a Salvation Army Mother and Baby Home at Hackney. On one occasion, he was asked to step in as Godfather at a christening. The Salvation Army Officer acted as Godmother and baptised the baby while reciting its mother’s chosen names.

Tony said, “For a few moments she spoke to the mother about sin and forgiveness. In simple terms, she contrasted both, concluding that forgiveness overcomes all human failings.

“With the recent death of Nelson Mandela, I am reminded of that baby and the additional names his mother ascribed to her infant. I never saw either mother or child again: but over the past few days of listening and thinking about the worldwide response to the death of Nelson Mandela, the words of the Salvation Army Godmother about forgiveness and how the man who served 27 years in prison forgave his captors, return to mind.

“That mother I encountered all those years ago was a Protestant. I was a Roman Catholic, the Salvation Army Officer a Christian. The baby boy was named Robert Nelson Mandela……,” said Tony.