Makerere University has honoured Mrs. Winnie Madikizela Mandela with one of its most prestigious awards the Honorary Doctorate of Laws (Honoris Causa). The function to honour her was performed by the Chancellor, Prof. Ezra Suruma, at the fourth and last session of the 68th Graduation Ceremony held on 19th January 2018 in the Freedom Square. Mrs. Winnie Mandela was represented by her niece, Ms. Gandhi Baai, accompanied by a delegation led by the South African High Commissioner to Uganda, Prof. Maj. Gen. (Rtd) Lekoa Solly Mollo. Ms. Gandhi Baai is a strong advocate for women's rights and a vehement Pan-Africanist, determined to tell the positive African story and has published several titles on this theme. She has travelled and worked widely in Africa.

In the citation presented by the Principal of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Prof. Edward K. Kirumira, Mrs. Winnie Mandela, better known in South Africa as the “Mother of the Nation”, is lauded for her crucial role in the liberation of South Africa from apartheid and colonialism in 1994. “She was among the more than one thousand women arrested in demonstrations against the injustices resulting from the pass laws which forced black people to carry identification documents to control their movements,” reads the citation. Mrs. Winnie Mandela remains an important figure in the history of the liberation struggle not only in South Africa but also in other parts of the world.

In his message, the President of the Republic of Uganda, Gen. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, represented by the Minister of Public Service, Hon. Wilson Muruli Mukasa, congratulated Mrs. Mandela upon her achievement, noting that the Mandela family had given their all to Africa and deserved recognition. “The Mandela family gave their all for Africa. They have no debt with Africa. They contributed to the achievement of emancipation, democracy and some steps toward economic integration in the form of SADC.  I am sure Mzee Mandela would have done more if he had had more time. It is now you and me to do what Mwalimu Nyerere, Mandela, Nkrumah, Sekou Toure, Modibo Keita, Walter Sisulu, Oliver Thambo, Patrice Lumumba, IK Musaazi and other freedom fighters did not do to insure Africa from the threats of foreign domination,” he said.

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