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Nelson Mandela 1918-2013
His parents named him Nelson
Rolihlahla Mandela.
Together with South African President
Frederik Willem de Klerk, Nelson Mandela was awarded the
Nobel Prize for Peace in
1993
"for their work for the peaceful termination of the apartheid
regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South
Africa"
Here is Mandela's
Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, delivered on December 10,
1993.
And here is the
Award Ceremony Speech, delivered by the chairman of the
Norwegian Nobel Committee, Francis Sejersted.
Nelson Mandela became the first black
president of South Africa. He was in office from 1994 -
1999.
Mandela's Early Life
In 1944, Mandela joined the ANC, the
African National Congress.
In December 1956, Mandela and others
were arrested and tried for treason. In 1961, the case was dropped
and Mandela was acquitted.
In January 1962, Mandela headed the delegation of the ANC at the
Conference of the Pan-African Freedom Movement of East and Central
Africa. On this occasion, Nelson Mandela delivered his
Address to the PAFMECA.
Mandela's Rivonia
Trial
In October 1963, Mandela and others were
arrested and accused of high treason in what became known as the
Rivonia Trial. Rivonia is a suburb of Johannesburg. Here, many
ANC officials had been arrested.
On April 20, 1964, Mandela defended
himself and delivered his
I Am
Prepared to Die speech before the Pretoria Supreme Court. It
is also known as his Statement from the dock at the Rivonia Trial.
On June 12, 1964, Mandela was sentenced
to life in jail.
Also convicted were Walter Sisulu, Govan
Mbeki, Raymond Mhlaba, Elias Motsoaledi, Andrew Mlangeni, Ahmed
Kathrada and Denis Goldberg.
Mandela's Life in Jail
Mandela spent 27 years of a life
sentence in jail serving
hard labor.
From 1964 until 1982, he was imprisoned on Robben
Island, located off Cape Town.
From 1982 until 1988 he was incarcerated
at Pollsmoor Prison and thereafter at Victor Verster Prison at
Paarl. He was released by the South African government under F.W.
de Klerk on February 11, 1990.
MANDELA GOES FREE TODAY
On February 11, 1990, Nelson Mandela
delivered his
address on his Release From Prison.
What is Apartheid?
Apartheid was the policy of
the South African government which divided blacks and whites.
Apartheid had its foundation
in the Population Registration Act from 1950.
Although apartheid officially ended when
Mandela became president in 1994, society had still some catching up
to do.
NELSON MANDELA
Mandela's ANC Election
Victory 1994
On May 2, 1994, and announcing the ANC
election victory, Nelson Mandela delivered his
Free at Last speech.
This election went into the history
books of South Africa as the country's first democratic and
multiracial general elections. Mandela was inaugurated on May 10,
1994. Here is his
Inaugural Address.
His parents named him Nelson
Rolihlahla Mandela.
Together with South African President
Frederik Willem de Klerk, Nelson Mandela was awarded the
Nobel Prize for Peace in
1993 "for their work for the peaceful termination of the apartheid
regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South
Africa"
Here is Mandela's
Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, delivered on December 10,
1993.
And here is the
Award Ceremony Speech, delivered by the chairman of the
Norwegian Nobel Committee, Francis Sejersted.
Nelson Mandela became the first black
president of South Africa. He was in office from 1994 -
1999, after which he retired from politics.
Mandela died on December 5, 2013, at
Johannesburg.
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