JOHANNESBURG — The remains of Nelson Mandela's three deceased children were reburied at their original resting site on Thursday, a day after a court ordered their return two years after a Mandela grandson moved the bodies.
Family members and community elders attended a ceremony on the Mandela property that included the singing of hymns. The reburial took place in Qunu, Mandela's hometown and the place the former president has said he wants to be buried. Forensic tests earlier confirmed the remains were those of Mandela's children.
Grandson Mandla Mandela moved the bodies to his village of Mvezo — Nelson Mandela's birthplace — in 2011. The two towns are about 15 miles apart. Fifteen Mandela family members pursued court action last week to force the grandson to move the bodies.
The bitter family feud comes as Mandela remains in critical condition nearly a month after being hospitalized for a recurring lung infection. A Mandela family court affidavit, obtained by the Mail and Guardian newspaper, said Mandela is on life support in the form of a breathing respirator.
Mandla Mandela — the oldest male Mandela heir and a tribal chief — told a news conference on Thursday that "my grandfather like myself would be highly disappointed in what is unraveling."
Meanwhile, Mandela's wife Graca Machel said the former president is sometimes uncomfortable but seldom in pain while being treated in a hospital.
Mandela, who was hospitalized on June 8, remains in critical but stable condition, according to a statement Thursday by President Jacob Zuma's office.
Read more in Friday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.