President Barack Obama was among top leaders who attended Nelson Mandela's funeral Tuesday in South Africa, the Associated Press reported.
In his speech, President Obama urged those in attendance to apply Mandela's lessons to their own life, according to the AP. The president spoke about Mandela's 27-year sentence in prison during a racist regime in South Africa, but still promoted forgiveness and acceptance among his enemies after he was released.
Addressing the memorial service for Mandela, who died Thursday at age 95, Obama stated that "around the world today, men and women are still imprisoned for their political beliefs; and are still persecuted for what they look like, or how they worship, or who they love," the AP reported.
"We, too, must act on behalf of justice. We, too, must act on behalf of peace," Obama said during the service, adding that when he was a student, Mandela "woke me up to my responsibilities - to others, and to myself - and set me on an improbable journey that finds me here today."
Though police were expecting dangerous and large crowds, bad weather and public transportation issues kept the stadium, which could fit about 95,000 people, only a little more than half filled, according to the AP. Authorities even set up big screen monitors, but they were not needed.
Public transportation has been scheduled to ferry people to the stadium in Soweto where townspeople revolted in 1976 against the white, racists rule, but only about 30,000 people were able to get to the stadium due to a power failure, the AP reported.
South African police also said the event would be kept under tight reigns and locked down roads all around the stadium, but the first crowds to enter the stadium were not searched, according to the AP.
Besides Obama, who shook hands with Cuban President Raul Castro on his way to the podium, almost 100 other heads of state and government officials were also president, the AP reported.
The current South African President, Jacob Zuma, was booed as many South Africans are disillusioned with the current corruption scandals occurring, but Thabo Mbeki, the former president who succeeded Mandela, who is seen by South African's as the father of the nation, was met by rousing applause, the AP reported.
French President Francois Hollande and his predecessor and rival, Nicolas Sarkozy, were present; United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, waved to the audience as he entered, according to the AP.
Attendee, Rohan Laird, a 54-year-old CEO of a health insurance company, said growing up in that same stadium where the memorial was being held as a White South African of "privileged position" gave him tremendous guilt and added that Mandela helped whites work through those issues, as well.
"His reconciliation allowed whites to be released themselves," Lair said. "I honestly don't think the world will see another leader like Nelson Mandela."
Tuesday also marked the 20th anniversary of when Mandela and former president F.W. de Klerk received he Nobel Peace Prize for bringing peace to the country, according to the AP. De Klerk, who was once a political rival, later becoming friends with Mandela, was also present at the memorial.
The rain and bad weather was blamed for keeping many mourners from attending, but a driver for the justice of ministry said the rain is a blessing among the South African community, according to the AP.
"In our culture the rain is a blessing," Harry Tshabalala told the AP. "Only great, great people are memorialized with it. Rain is life. This is perfect weather for us on this occasion."
