South Africa
In photos: The ANC’s Bloemfontein
The African National Congress (ANC) has rolled into town for their elective conference and with them come the heavyweights vying for leadership. Delegates have filled the hotels and security forces are ruling the streets. But for some, life in the town of the ANC’s birth goes on as normal. By GREG MARINOVICH & GREG NICOLSON.
ANC former presidents adorn the defunct cooling towers ahead of the ANC’s 53rd conference. Photo: Greg Marinovich/NewsFire
As ANC delegates from various provinces prepare to be registered ahead of the ANC’s national elective conference, health scares surrounding former President Nelson Mandela continue. President Zuma unveiled a new statue of Mandela in Bloemfontein on Friday. Photo: Greg Marinovich/NewsFire
ANC conference delegates descended on Mangaung Saturday to collect their accreditation. These Eastern Cape delegates show their support of President Zuma and Secretary General Gwede Mantashe. Photo: Greg Marinovich/NewsFire
A young girl poses outside the Free State’s ANC headquarters in Bloemfontein. Photo: Greg Marinovich/NewsFire
Mangaung Municipality has been gearing for the ANC’s national elective conference since the party celebrated its 100th anniversary in the area in January. A man walks past the Free State ANC’s offices before the event. Photo: Greg Nicolson/NewsFire
A panoramic view of Mangaung. The new statue of Nelson Mandela sits on the edge of Naval hill, left. Photo: Greg Marinovich/NewsFire
Main photo: The ANC was founded in Bloemfontein in 1912 and have covered the town in party regalia as it returns to celebrate the party’s centenary. Next to the cooling towers, draped in the images of former party leaders, a boy lives on a trash-covered slope where he sniffs glue. Greg Nicolson/NewsFire
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