Wednesday, June 16, 1999 Published at 12:35 GMT 13:35 UK

Mandela era ends


Thabo Mbeki has been sworn in as the new President of South Africa - finally
lifting the burden of power from the shoulders of Nelson Mandela.

In front of a huge crowd gathered at the Union Building in Pretoria,
President
Mbeki took the oath of office before standing alongside Mr Mandela for a
21-gun
salute.

The two men gripped hands and held them above their heads in a victory
salute as
the crowd cheered loudly.

Representatives from 130 countries attended the ceremony which saw Mr
Mandela
step down after five years of leading the country during its transition to
democratic rule.

In his inauguration speech President Mbeki paid tribute to the generation of
leaders
now retiring from the political scene.

"It is a day of salute for a generation that pulled our country out of the
abyss and placed
it on the pedastal of hope," he said.

He said the Mandela era was a beginning, but that the full meaning of
liberation would
not be realised until people were freed from what he called the
"dehumanising legacy
of deprivation".

Nelson Mandela - statesman of the century ? Read and submit your views

Mr Mandela became South Africa's first black president in the country's
first multi-race
elections in 1994.

Thabo Mbeki takes the oath of office
The ANC won another decisive victory in the country's second all-race
elections on
2 June.

The handover falls on the anniversary of the start of the 1976 Soweto
uprising, a turning
point in the struggle against apartheid.

At the venue for the ceremony, statues of the men who imposed white rule on
South
Africa's majority black population were covered up with sacking.

Concert for the people

Among the 30 heads of state attending the occasion were many allies of the
ANC such
as Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, Libyan leader Muammar Gadaffi, and
Namibian
President Sam Nujoma.

Later there will be a "concert for the people", featuring American singer
Jermaine Jackson
and South African performers Johnny Clegg and Brenda Fassie, which about
90,000 fans
are expected to attend.

And South Africa's national football team will play Zimbabwe for the
Presidential Inauguration
Cup.

BBC's Greg Barrow assesses Nelson Mandela's retirement prospects
Mr Mandela has said he wants to "retire into obscurity", and spend time with
his grandchildren.

He says he will divide his time between South Africa and Mozambique, home of
his wife
Graca Machel.

He has also said he will spend time writing his memoirs.

New government

South Africans will have to wait until Friday for the new president to
announce his government.

The delay is because the ANC is still negotiating with the Zulu-based
Inkatha Freedom Party
on the composition of the cabinet, and control of the volatile KwaZulu-Natal
province.