"We've lost our greatest son." South Africa's Nelson Mandela dies at 95 By Associated Press - Dec. 6, 2013 midnight
JOHANNESBURG — Nelson Mandela, one of the world's most beloved leaders and a hero of the 20th century, died on Thursday, Dec. 5. He was 95.
South African President Jacob Zuma made the announcement at a news conference late on Thursday. "We've lost our greatest son," he said.
Mandela was most known for his fight to end apartheid, a system that forced non-white South Africans to live separately and with fewer rights.
As South Africa's first black president, he used well-chosen gestures of forgiveness to build a bridge between whites and blacks. He even had lunch with the government lawyer who sent him to jail.
A Symbol Of Freedom
Mandela had been convicted of treason and sentenced to life in prison in 1964 for leading a campaign of sabotage against the government. From there, he was sent to one of the country's worst prisons on Robben Island. While Mandela was in prison, it was forbidden to quote him or publish his photo. But he was able to sneak out messages to help others fight against the apartheid system.
Thousands died, were tortured and were imprisoned in the long struggle against apartheid. When Mandela emerged from prison in 1990, smiling and waving to the crowds, the image became an international symbol of freedom.
South Africa's white rulers had portrayed Mandela as a revolutionary who would take away property from private owners. They said black rule would lead to the same chaos and bloodshed that had happened elsewhere on the continent.
Yet since apartheid ended, South Africa has had three peaceful presidential elections. The country has set an example for the rest of Africa, where democracy is still new and easily broken.
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born July 18, 1918, the son of a tribal chief. Growing up at a time when nearly all of Africa was under European rule, Mandela attended Methodist schools. After that, he went to a university for black students in 1938. He was expelled two years later for taking part in a student strike.
Spear Of The Nation
Mandela moved to Johannesburg and worked as a policeman at a gold mine, boxed as an amateur heavyweight, and studied law. He married and had four children.
He first became a leader in the fight against apartheid in 1944, when he helped form the African National Congress (ANC) Youth League.
He organized a campaign in 1952 to encourage people to disobey laws that segregated schools, marriage, housing and jobs. The government got back at him by barring him from going to gatherings and leaving Johannesburg.
After a two-day nationwide strike was crushed by police, Mandela pushed to form Umkhonto we Sizwe, or Spear of the Nation. It was a more militia-like wing of the anti-apartheid movement.
In 1962 he was arrested for leaving the country illegally and inciting blacks to strike. He was sentenced to five years of hard labor
A year later, police uncovered the ANC's underground headquarters on a farm and found documents outlining plans for an attack. Mandela and seven others were sentenced to life in prison.
"I do not deny that I planned sabotage," he told the court. "I did not plan it in a spirit of recklessness, nor because I have any love of violence. I planned it as a result of a calm and sober assessment of the political situation that had arisen after years of tyranny, exploitation and oppression of my people by whites."
Elected President By A Landslide
From the late 1960s, other countries gradually began to shun South Africa. It was expelled from the U.N. and banned from the Olympics. In 1973 the government offered to release Mandela on condition he agree to stay in his native land of Transkei. He refused. In 1982 he and other top ANC prisoners were moved off Robben Island to a mainland prison. Three years later, Mandela was again offered freedom, and again he refused unless segregation laws were scrapped and the government negotiated with the ANC.
In 1989, F.W. de Klerk became president. The white leader recognized the end was near for white-ruled South Africa.
On Feb. 11, 1990, Mandela, who had once been refused permission to leave prison for his mother's funeral, went free and walked hand-in-hand with Winnie, his wife. Blacks across the country erupted in joy — as did many whites.
Mandela took charge of the ANC. He shared the Nobel Peace Prize with de Klerk in 1993. In the following year, he was elected president by a landslide in South Africa's first all-race election.
He and the Archbishop Desmond Tutu set up the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The Commission allowed people of all races who had violated human rights to admit their crimes publicly in return for a lighter punishment. It turned out to be a form of national therapy. Other countries coming out of long conflicts followed South Africa's example and set up similar commissions.
Mandela increasingly left Deputy President Thabo Mbeki in charge. Mbeki became president after Mandela's term ended in June 1999. Mandela did not run for another term, which is rare for African presidents.
"I must step down while there are one or two people who admire me," Mandela joked at the time.
Questions for Discussion
- Why is the death of Nelson Mandela news?
- What qualities made Nelson Mandela remarkable?
- How did Nelson Mandela's values influence the choices he made in his life?