MP Paul Dewar wants to rename Pretoria Bridge to honour Canada’s relationship with former South African President Nelson Mandela
The Pretoria Bridge, which has for more than a century commemorated a Canadian-British victory during the Boer War, needs a name-change to reflect Canada’s contemporary relationship with South Africa, NDP Ottawa Centre MP Paul Dewar said in a press release Thursday.
He wants to rename the major gateway into Centretown after the former South African president and anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela.
“A fitting tribute to Mandela would also be a tribute to Canadian civil society that advocated for an end to Apartheid and the Canadian government that took a principled position in foreign policy,” said Dewar.
It would also commemorate the close relationship Mandela has with Canada when he became president after 27 years of imprisonment. He made Ottawa one of his first international visits as head of the South African state.
There was a proposal in the 1980s to rename the bridge after Mandela during the height of Canada’s anti-apartheid economic boycott but the city council at the time didn’t act on it.
Dewar also noted that Ottawa is one of the few Western capitals that lack a tribute to Mandela who turned 92 in July.