Ireland–South Africa relations as premature. The Irish embassy opened in Pretoria in 1994. From the early 1960s Ireland vehemently opposed apartheid in South Africa. South African Nelson Mandela, then a dissident, later president, was awarded the Freedom of the City of Dublin in 1988 while a political prisoner; he collected the award upon his release in 1990. Diplomatic ties between the two countries were established in 1994. In November 2003, Brian Cowen, while touring Africa as Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, promised South African President Thabo Mbeki that Ireland would highlight African problems when it ascended to the Council Presidency of the European
Flag of South Africa (1928–1994) leading to it being labeled the "Apartheid flag". It was replaced by the current flag of South Africa in 1994 with the commencement of the republic's transitional constitution and the end of apartheid. Following its retirement in 1994 the flag has been controversial within South Africa, with some people viewing it as historic and a symbol of Afrikaner heritage while others view it as a symbol of apartheid and of white supremacy. Before 31 May 1928 the only flag that had official status in the Union of South Africa was the United Kingdom's Union Jack as South Africa was part