Mandela spends 95th birthday in hospital, makes progress

He has made “dramatic progress,” and may be going home “anytime soon,” said his daughter Zindzi.“I visited him yesterday and he was watching television with headphones,” said Zindzi Mandela in an interview with Britain’s Sky TV. “He gave us a huge smile and raised his hand … He responds with his eyes and his hands.”Mandela […]

He has made “dramatic progress,” and may be going home “anytime soon,” said his daughter Zindzi.
“I visited him yesterday and he was watching television with headphones,” said Zindzi Mandela in an interview with Britain’s Sky TV. “He gave us a huge smile and raised his hand … He responds with his eyes and his hands.”
Mandela is gaining “energy and strength,” said his daughter. “I should think he will be going home anytime soon.” The latest description by Zindzi — who is one of Mandela’s daughters by his second wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela — is a significant improvement from court documents filed by the family earlier this month which said he was on life support and near death. South African President Jacob Zuma, who visited Mr Mandela in hospital, also said he was “encouraged” by his progress.
“When I visited him today… I was able to say ‘happy birthday’ and he was able to smile,” Mr Zuma said in a statement.  “Mandela’s struggle for freedom and justice in our country and his values of promoting a fair, just and equitable world continues to inspire and motivate us,” he told a visiting EU delegation. South Africans were urged to mark Mr Mandela’s 67 years of public service with 67 minutes of charitable acts.