Retired Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, right, arrives with Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan for the memorial service for former South African president Nelson Mandela at the FNB Stadium in the Johannesburg, South Africa township of Soweto, Tuesday Dec. 10, 2013. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
December 14, 2013 - 1:04 AM
JOHANNESBURG - A spokesman for retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu says the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, longtime friend of Nelson Mandela and occasional critic of the current government won't be attending Mandela's funeral because he didn't receive credentials to do so.
"The Archbishop is not an accredited clergyperson for the event and thus will not be attending," Rev. Mpho Tutu, the archbishop's daughter, said in a statement. She is chief executive of the Desmond and Leah Tutu Foundation.
A spokesman for Tutu refused to elaborate and said Tutu himself would not be commenting.
Tutu spoke earlier in the week at a memorial service to Mandela held in Soweto. Mandela is to be buried Sunday in his home village of Qunu.
News from © The Associated Press, 2013