NELSON MANDELA

INTRODUCTION

NELSON MANDELA was the “FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT” of South Africa [from 1994 to 1999]
He received NOBEL PEACE PRIZE along with former South African president F.W DE CLERK in 1993.
He spent 27 years in prison for various political offences .

A WALK THROUGH HIS LIFE

NELSON MANDELA was born on 18 July 1918 in MVEZO,SOUTH AFRICA.
His birth name was “ROLIHLAHLA MANDELA”
He was the first in his family to attend school
Due to British colonization at that time his teacher change his first name to a Christian name MANDELA thus “ROLIHLAHLA MANDELA” becomes NELSON MANDELA
When he was 12 years old he lost his father after that he was adopted by a friend of his father.
His father’s friend was the chief of the Tembus people, thus he traveled to the chief palace Mqhekezueni.
In the palace he took classes studying English, History and Geography.
The elder chiefs and peoples comes to palace occasionally. From them he developed an interest in AFRICAN HISTORY.He learned how the Africans live peacefully and happily before the coming of the WHITE PEOPLE’S.
In 1939,He joined at the “UNIVERSITY OF FORE HARE” “UNIVERSITY OF FORT HARE” was considered Africans equivalent of HARVARD at that time.
In his second year at the UNIVERSITY OF FORT HERE he was elected to the “STUDENTS REPRESENTATIVE COUNCIL” but joining with student majority who suffer from the lack of food and power supply in the university he resigned from his position.
The university expelled Mandela for his act, thus he returned back to the palace of the chief . After a few weeks, the chief decided to arrange a marriage for Mandela.
Shocked by the arrangement of his marriage, he run away from the palace. He then settled in JOHANNESBURG where he worked as a guard and a clerk.
He then joined the “UNIVERSITY OF WITWATER SRAND” in JOHANNESBURG to study law.
In 1942 he joined the AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS [ANC] . ANC fought for full citizenship, free and compulsory education for all students, Re-distribution of land etc.
In 1944, he married “EVELYN NTOKO MASE”
He along with his friends “OLIVER TAMBO” founded a “LAW FIRM” which provided free and low cost legal classes to the black students.
In 1956, he and 150 others were arrested for their political activities.
After his release, he co-founded an “ARMED FORCE OF AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS” to use Guerrilla war methods against the white people.
In 1961, he conducted a three day NATIONAL WORKERS STRIKE for which he was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment.
He spent 27 years in prison from 1962 until 1990.He was jailed on “ROBIN ISLAND” for 18 years out of 27 years.
During his jail period, he secured a “BACHELOR OF LAW DEGREE” from “UNIVERSITY OF LONDON” through a correspondence program.
In 1982 he and other leaders were moved from “ROBBEN ISLAND” to “POLLSMOOR PRISON”.
With increasing local and international pressure, he was finally released on “11th February 1990” by the president “FEDARICK DE KLERK”
In 1991, he was elected as a the president of “AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS”.
In 1993 Nelson Mandela and the president “FREDERICK DE KLERK” received “NOBEL PEACE PRIZE.”
IN 1994,”SOUTH AFRICA”held its first Democratic election and NELSON MANDELA was Elected as the” COUNTRIES FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT” at the age of 77. “FREDERICK DE KLERK” was his first deputy.
In 1999, he retired from active politics. He continued to raise funds to build “schools and clinics” in the rural areas of South Africa.
In 2001 he was treated and diagnosed for “PROSTATE CANCER”.
In 2004, at the age of 85, He announced his full retirement from public life and returned to his native village.
In 2007, he along with his wife “GRACA MACHEL” founded a group “THE ELDERS”.THE ELDERS aim to work both publicly and privately to find solutions to some of the world’s toughest issues.
He died on 5th December 2013, at the age of 95 in his home in “JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA”
He is known as “THE BELOVED MADIBA”.

NOTABLE

He published his autobiography “LONG WALK TO FREEDOM” in 1994. The book was written by him secretly while he was in prison.

PROFILE

NAME -NELSON ROLIHLAHLA MANDELA DATE OF BIRTH -18TH JULY, 1918 PLACE OF BIRTH- MVEZO, SOUTH AFRICA NATIONALITY- AFRICAN EDUCATION- UNIVERSITY OF FORT HARE -UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATER SRAND -UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA -UNIVERSITY OF LONDON LIFE PARTNER -EVELYN NTOKO MASE -WINNIE MADIKIZELA -GRACE MACHEL AWARD- NOBEL PEACE PRIZE [1993] -BHARAT RATNA [1990] -NISHAN-E-PAKISTAN [1992] -LENIN PEACE PRIZE [1990] BOOK -“LONG WALK TO FREEDOM” NICK NAME- MADIBA DIED-5th DECEMBER 2013[AGED 95] PLACE OF DEATH – JOHNNESBERG,SOUTH AFRICA

QUOTES

“I NEVER LOSE I EITHER WIN OR LEARN”

“THE BRAVE MAN IS NOT HE WHO DOES NOT FEEL AFRAID BUT HE WHO CONQUERS THAT FEAR“

“EDUCATION IS THE MOST POWERFUL WEAPON WHICH YOU CAN USE TO CHANGE THE WORLD”