How Mulroney rallied nations against apartheid in South Africa

Three months after becoming prime minister in 1984, Brian Mulroney hosted Desmond Tutu, the bishop of Johannesburg and a powerful South African anti-apartheid leader, in his office in Ottawa.

That meeting not only solidified Mulroney's long-standing opposition to apartheid — the racist policy that imposed white-minority rule over South Africa's majority Black population — it also galvanized Canada's 18th prime minister into action.

«I sought [Tutu's] advice on what role Canada might play in the seemingly stalled efforts to free Nelson Mandela and end apartheid in South Africa. 'Do you think a middle power like Canada could have an effective impact on the situation?' I asked him,» Mulroney recalled in a 2015 Globe and Mail opinion piece.

«Bishop Tutu was vigorous in his response: 'I think Canada can have an important, even a lead role in translating morality into political action.'»

Mulroney's subsequent public denunciations of apartheid and efforts to marshal Western opposition against it were never forgotten by the nation. Current South African President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his sadness Friday at the «passing of a leader who holds a special place in South Africa's history.»

«For us, his passing is made profound by the fact that we have lost this friend and ally in the year in which we are marking 30 years of freedom and in which we pay tribute to all those around the world who supported our struggle for freedom and democracy.

»May his soul rest in peace."

While academics and critics continue to debate the overall effectiveness of Canadian actions under the Mulroney government, South Africa awarded Mulroney in 2015 the Order of the Companions of O.R. Tambo for «his exceptional contribution to the liberation of South