A PICTURE that purported to show former president Nelson Mandela in his coffin was a fake.
The picture was posted on Twitter early yesterday and re-tweeted three times. However, it was quickly withdrawn.
Government spokesperson Phumla Williams said in a statement last night: “The Department of State Security has confirmed that the photograph of President Mandela, purported to be of him lying in his casket at the Union Buildings, is a fake.
“Government finds it extremely distasteful that a member of the public would engage in such behaviour and manipulate a photograph of President Mandela at this time.”