SOUTH Africa’s ailing former leader Nelson Mandela was discharged from hospital on Wednesday after spending almost three weeks being treated for a lung infection, the presidency said.
The much-loved 94-year-old Nelson Mandela, who was president from September 1998 to June 1999, had been admitted to a hospital in the capital Pretoria on December 8.
“Former president Nelson Mandela was discharged from hospital,” said a statement from President Jacob Zuma’s office.
“He will undergo home-based high care at his Houghton (Johannesburg) home until he fully recovers.”
It was his longest hospital stay since coming out of prison in 1990 after 27 years in detention.
“We request a continuation of the privacy consideration in order to allow for the best possible conditions for full recovery,” the presidency statement said.
The Nobel Peace laureate was visited on Christmas Day by his wife Graca and other family members along with Zuma, who had said Mr Mandela was “looking much better” and “in good spirits”.