ZIMBABWE's WHITE MINISTER DIES

Dr Stamps died at the Borrowdale Trauma Centre in the capital, Harare, after suffering from a lung infection.

Zimbabwe has declared former Health Minister Timothy Stamps - who was once the only white person in the government of ousted President Robert Mugabe - a national hero following his death on Sunday at the age of 81, the state-run Herald newspaper reports. 

A delegation of the ruling Zanu-PF party visited Dr Stamp's home yesterday, describing him as someone who was "keen on the welfare" of Zimbabweans and would be "missed a lot", the newspaper adds.

Zanu-PF official Obert Mpofu said:

"We have been requested by His Excellency [new President Emmerson Mnnangagwa] to come and inform the family that he has been declared a national hero... His name is like a family name in communities."

Dr Stamps played a key role in promoting reconciliation between black and white people after Zimbabwe's independence in 1980. He was elected an MP on a Zanu-PF ticket in 1985, and served as health minister from 1986 to 2002. For much of this period, he was the only white person in the government.

The Herald described him as a health adviser to Mr Mugabe and the cabinet at the time of his death.

Dr Stamps died at the Borrowdale Trauma Centre in the capital, Harare, after suffering from a lung infection.

In 2000, journalist Andrew Meldrum wrote in the UK-based Guardian newspaper that he was "one of the most persuasive advocates" of Mr Mugabe's government.