"Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again." - Nelson Mandela
We see how one man's remarkable life has reached its
fulfillment and has blossomed into a national vision. Inspired by myriad
influences, taking the best from both his native heritage, from the example of
foreign freedom movements, and even from the history and literature of his
oppressors, Nelson Mandela forged a vision of humanity that encompasses all
people and that sets the hallmark for the rest of the world.
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born in Transkei, South Africa on July 18, 1918.
His father was Hendry Mphakanyiswa of the Tembu Tribe. Mandela himself was
educated at University College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand
where he studied law.
"Color-Blindness"
Starting his fight for liberation of the blacks as an
aggressive young African pugilist and nationalist in the early 1940's, Mandela
had not always deemed that democratic progress must rest on equality,
pluralism, and multiethnicity. What made him later stand out from other South
African leaders, and made him finally emerge victorious, was precisely his
vision of a state that belongs equally to all its different peoples, nations,
and tribes, whether Afrikaan, English, or Zulu. Being himself a leader belonging
to the Xhosa-speaking people, he eventually transcended the idea of national
liberty, and he attracted Indians, Jews, and other segments of the
multicoloured population to the cause. Countering the racist suppression of the
blacks, he avoided, unlike many other revolutionaries of the continent,
acceding to a basically or exclusively black or tribal liberation movement. This
vision, sometimes referred to as "colour-blindness," was partly
inspired by Marxists, drawing on European ideologies and influenced from
abroad.
Equality
and Pluralism
He joined the African National Congress (ANC) in 1944 and
was engaged in resistance against the ruling National Party's apartheid
policies after 1948. He went on trial for treason in 1956-1961 and was
acquitted in 1961.
After the banning of the ANC in 1960, Nelson Mandela argued
for the setting up of a military wing within the ANC. In June 1961, the ANC
executive considered his proposal on the use of violent tactics and agreed that
those members who wished to involve themselves in Mandela's campaign would not
be stopped from doing so by the ANC. This led to the formation of “Umkhonto we
Sizwe”. Mandela was arrested in 1962 and sentenced to five years' imprisonment.
In 1963, when many fellow leaders of the ANC and the Umkhonto we Sizwe were
arrested, Mandela was brought to stand trial with them for plotting to
overthrow the government by violence. His statement received considerable
international publicity. On June 12, 1964, eight of the accused, including
Mandela, were sentenced to life imprisonment. From 1964 to 1982, he was
incarcerated at Robben Island Prison, off Cape Town; thereafter, he was at
Pollsmoor Prison, nearby on the mainland.
The Rainbow
Government
Nelson Mandela was released on February 11, 1990. After his
release, he plunged himself wholeheartedly into his life's work, striving to
attain the goals he and others had set out almost four decades earlier. In
1991, at the first national conference of the ANC held inside South Africa
after the organization had been banned in 1960, Mandela was elected President
of the ANC while his lifelong friend and colleague, Oliver Tambo, became the
organisation's National Chairperson.
In1994, he became the first black president of the country.
When he entered into office, he was aware of the universal importance of this
success, but he was also humbled by the focus on his person as a symbol of
international and historical dimensions.
Laurels
When the Norwegian Nobel Committee decided to award the
Nobel Peace Prize for 1993 to Nelson R. Mandela, it was pointed out that his
achievement was made by "looking ahead to South African reconciliation
instead of back at the deep wounds of the past." The committee also
observed that South Africa has been the very symbol of racially conditioned
suppression, and that the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime
accordingly "points the way to the peaceful resolution of similar
deep-rooted conflicts elsewhere in the world."
"To have spent 27 years in jail.... To have been deprived of the whole mighty center of one's life, and to emerge apparently without a trace of bitterness, alert and ready to lead one's country forward, maybe the most extraordinary human achievement that I have witnessed in my lifetime"- Arthur Ashe on Nelson
His two books "A Long Walk to Freedom" and
"Conversations with Myself”, will depict his thoughts for the future
generations and be the guiding North Star for people. Thanks for living for
someone else first and for yourself later.
