and thus not acceptable to South Africans of other religions, particularly Muslim South Africans. A new verse found in neither song was also added. The English version of "Die Stem van Suid-Afrika" was less prominent than the Afrikaans version and thus could be changed with little objection or controversy. As such, the English portion of the new South African national anthem was the one which had its lyrics changed from the previous version. Criticism In recent years, the South African national anthem has come under criticism for its Afrikaans verse as it was originally part of the national anthem of South Africa that was used during the apartheid era, with some such as the Economic Freedom Fighters calling for the verse to be removed, supposedly because of this connection. Others defend the inclusion of the verse, pointing out that it is included in large part due to the wishes of the first post-apartheid South African president, Nelson Mandela, who intended its inclusion as a reconciliatory measure for the post-apartheid future of South Africa. Lyrics Translations Besides English, the anthem has also been fully translated into the other official languages of South Africa. See also National anthem of Tanzania National anthem of Zambia National anthem of the Transvaal National anthem of the Orange Free State List of national anthems Notes References External links National Anthem Toolkit Wikipedia The National Anthem National Anthem of South Africa – Streaming audio, lyrics and information (archive link) Audio recording of the National Anthem (instrumental only, MP3 file) Brief introduction to the anthem and notation The South African national anthem in MIDI format The South African national anthem in MP3 format South Africa National symbols of South Africa South African songs Macaronic songs Music medleys National anthem compositions in G major National anthem compositions in D major