​KABALIKAT

Nelson Mandela [18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013]

 

Freedom Fighter - “To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.”

 

Nelson Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, politician and philanthropist. Working as a lawyer, he was repeatedly arrested for seditious activities against the white government of South Africa. Tried by a court of white men, he was convicted and Mandela served 27 years in prison, initially on Robben Island, and later in Pollsmoor Prison and Victor Verster Prison, i.e. from 1964-1990.

 

After his release from prison, he was elected and served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999 becoming South Africa's first black chief executive at the age of 75 years old.. He was elected in a fully representative democratic election. His government focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid through tackling institutionalised racism, poverty and inequality, and fostering racial reconciliation.

 

Mandela throughout his life gained international acclaim for his activism, having received more than 250 honours, including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize, the US Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Soviet Order of Lenin. He is held in deep respect within South Africa, where he is often referred to by his Xhosa clan name, Madiba, or as Tata ("Father"); he is often described as the "Father of the Nation". He died on 5 December 2013 at the age of 95.

 

His life and accomplishments are inspiration to people around the globe as oppressed by their government and the social injustice system; earning him the moniker “freedom fighter”. And, he publsihed a book entitled "Long Walk to Freedom".