JOHANNESBURG, Jan 6: Former South African president Nelson Mandela said on Thursday that his son Makgatho had died of AIDS. "We have called you here today to announce that my son has died of AIDS ," Mr Mandela told reporters gathered at his Johannesburg home just hours after his only surviving son passed away.

Makgatho Mandela, 54, had been in intensive care for the past weeks, but no details were released about his condition. Mr Makgatho had been admitted to a Johannesburg hospital late last year. His wife Zondi died of pneumonia in 2003.

"For some time I have been saying 'Let us give publicity to AIDS and not hide it'. It is the only way to make it appear like a normal illness...To come out and say someone has died of HIV, then people will stop regarding it as an illness reserved to people who go to hell and not heaven," Mr Mandela said.

"I have been saying this for the past years even before I even suspected a member of my family has AIDS," he said. The hero of South Africa's struggle against apartheid has been at the forefront of his country's battle against AIDS, which affects one in four adults, according to UN AIDS. -AFP