Nelson Mandelas Life and Leadership - Essay Example

Nelson Mandela. Nelson Mandela is undoubtedly one of the Titans of the twentieth century, and a living legend, whosereputation and ideology transcends geographical and political dispensations. He may be considered a truly global phenomenon and his remarkable legacy belongs to all mankind. A study of his life and times is a lesson in integrity, endurance and tolerance, and is inextricably linked to the birth and evolution of present-day South Africa. Rolihlahla Mandela was born on 18 July, 1918, at Mvezo, in the black heartland of the Transkei in South Africa, to Nonqaphi Nosekeni and Henry Mgadla Mandela. His father was the principal advisor to the Thembu Chief, Jongintaba Dalindyebo. Mandela’s boyhood was spent cattle-herding, and he attended a local mission school, where his primary school teacher gave him the anglicized moniker ‘Nelson.’ After his father’s death in 1927, Mandela was adopted into the Chief’s family. It was during his days as an undergraduate at the University College of Fort Hare, that he first entered into the world of protest against apartheid. In 1940, Mandela was suspended from the College for participating in a student boycott, and later completed his B.A., through correspondence, from the University of South Africa in 1942. Mandela started his articles at the law firm of Witkin, Sidelsky & Eidelman, in 1941, and enrolled for his LLB at the University of the Witwatersrand in the following year. His full-fledged political career commenced in 1943, when he joined the African National Congress (ANC). In 1944, Mandela joined a group of young Africans, under the leadership of Anton Lembede, and co- founded the ANC Youth League (ANCYL), which advocated a more militant African nationalism in the struggle for self-determination, as opposed to the genteel approach of the ANC. In 1949, the ANC adopted the Programme of Action, designed by the ANCYL, incorporating boycotts, strikes and non-cooperation as means of protest. Mandela rose to become the Secretary, and then the President of the ANCYL in 1951. The ANC and the South African Indian Congress launched The Defiance Campaign against Unjust Laws on 26 June 1952, under which thousands of protestors passively resisted apartheid laws. The Congress Alliance presented a Freedom Charter in 1955, listing their demands for self-determination. This led to the arrest of the Congress Alliance leaders, including Mandela, under the Suppression of Communism Act. The infamous ‘Treason Trial’ culminated in the acquittal of all the 160 accused in 1961. Mandela started South Africa’s first black law firm with Oliver Tambo in 1952. In readiness for future contingencies, he designed the ‘M-plan,’ for the underground operation of the ANC. Matters came to a head in March 1960, with the police massacre of 69 peaceful black demonstrators at Sharpeville. Subsequently, the ANC was banned, and Mandela emerged as its foremost leader in the underground struggle. His leadership of the struggle from hiding, earned him the sobriquet ‘The Black Pimpernel.’ At the All-in African Conference in Pietermaritzburg during March 1961, the opposition, under Mandela, announced the birth of a new Republic, based on democratic principles. At this juncture, when non-violent opposition continued to yield no dividends, Mandela, and the ANC, launched the Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation), incorporating strategies of sabotage of military and government targets. Mandela toured Africa and abroad, raising support for a guerilla army. He was apprehended on his return, in August 1962 and tried for sabotage. Mandela’s impassioned, inspirational declaration at the conclusion of his own defense at the Rivonia Trial has gone down in the annals of history: “I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.” (Nelson Mandela Foundation. Biography). Mandela was sentenced to life imprisonment in May 1963. Mandela declined to appeal, and began his 27 years of incarceration as Prisoner 466/64 at Robben Island. It was now that Mandela evolved into the most potent anti-apartheid symbol in living history, and became the rallying point for a growing global clamor for its end. Reports of the inhumane treatment, hard labor at the lime quarry (which resulted in Mandela’s loss of vision in one eye), and inadequate rations, coupled with Mandela’s refusal to bow down to indignity, fired the conscience of the world. In 1980, Oliver Tambo, who was in exile, launched the international ‘Free Nelson Mandela!’ campaign, which reverberated across the globe. Partial economic sanctions were imposed on South Africa, largely due to the efforts of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who had assumed the leadership of the ANC. President P W Botha was pressurized into offering Mandela release from prison, in 1982, on the condition of his renouncing violence. Mandela’s words of refusal, "Only free men can negotiate. A prisoner cannot enter into contracts" (Vallely, The Independent), captured the hearts of millions. However, in 1985, Mandela was moved to a single cell in Pollsmoor Prison, and began negotiations with the regime. In the face of South Africa’s increasing isolation on the world stage, President F W de Clerk succumbed to the inevitable and ordered the release of ‘the world’s most famous prisoner’ on 11 February 1990. On the personal front, Mandela escaped from an arranged marriage in 1940 and married Evelyn Ntoko Mase in 1944. They had four children: Thembekile (1946); Makaziwe (1947 – who dies after nine months); Makgatho (1951) and Makaziwe (1954). In 1958, after divorcing Mase, Mandela married Nomzamo Winnie Madikizela, and has two daughters: Zenani (1959) and Zindziswa (1960). His mother and son, Thembekile, died while he was on Robben Island. Mandela divorced Winnie in 1996, and married Gracha Machel in 1998.He has battled tuberculosis and prostate cancer. On the death of his son, Makgatho in 2005, Mandela announced the cause to be complications due to AIDS, thus trying to lift the taboo about the dreaded disease in Africa and increasing public awareness. He stepped down from public life in 2004, but continues his campaigns under the aegis of the three foundations bearing his name: The Nelson Mandela Foundation, The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund and The Mandela-Rhodes Foundation. (The Nelson Mandela Foundation website). Just as he had emerged as the symbol of defiance against apartheid during his 27 years as a prisoner, Mandela now became the shining embodiment of forgiveness and reconciliation. Elected President of the ANC in 1991, he embarked on the last lap of his quest for the end of apartheid, with the same integrity and compassion which had marked his earlier struggle. 19 May, 1994, witnessed the culmination of a life dedicated to the birth of a new, non-discriminatory South Africa: the first free elections saw Mandela installed as the first black President. In what can be termed “his most extraordinary achievement,” (Vallely, The Independent), towards the cause of humanity, Mandela adopted a remarkable policy of forgiveness, which made possible the emergence of South Africa as a peaceful, multi-racial democracy. He invited P W Botha to his inauguration, symbolically demonstrated his support of South Africa’s all-white rugby team, and stood firmly behind Archbishop Tutu’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which granted amnesty to all confessors to crimes under apartheid. By his reckoning, "Men of peace must not think about retribution or recriminations," he said. "Courageous people do not fear forgiving, for the sake of peace.” (Vallely, The Independent). After one term, Mandela stepped down from being President in 1999, at the age of 79. He continues his presence on the world stage as a ardent advocate in the campaigns against poverty and AIDS, and as a supporter of human rights. He is the recipient of numerous, richly deserved awards and accolades, including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize, the 1988 United Nations’ Human Rights Award, the 1998 US Congressional Gold Medal , the 2002 US Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the British Order of Merit. A commemorative stamp in Mandela’s honor was issued by the USSR in 1998, Zimbabwe declared ‘Mandela Day’ as a national holiday in 1990, and his statue was erected in London’s Parliament Square in 2007. (Black History web page).Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela remains one of the worlds most beloved and admired political leaders. He is a living testament to the tenacity and triumph of the human spirit in the quest for freedom, to the moral integrity which is the true mark of greatness, and, above all, to the compassion and tolerance that have made his name synonymous with peace. He continues to be an inspiration to generations of people. His legacy belongs not only to South Africa, but to all humanity. Works Cited. Biography.com. Black History. Nelson Mandela. Retrieved on 11 April 2009 from < http://www.biography.com/blackhistory/featured-biography/nelson-mandela.jsp > Nelson Mandela Foundation. Living the Legacy. Memory. Biography. Retrieved on 11 April 2009 from < http://www.nelsonmandela.org/index.php/memory/views/biography/ > Vallely, Paul. A monument to Mandela: the Robben Island years. The Independent. Sunday, 2 September 200. Retrieved on 11 April 2009 from < http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/a-monument-to-mandela-the-robben-island-years-401137.html >       Although Mr Mandela and Mase had effectively separated in 1955, it wasn’t until 1958 that they formally divorced – and shortly afterwards, in June, he was married to Nomzamo Winnie Mandela. Their first date was at an Indian restaurant near Mr Mandela’s office and he recalls that she was “dazzling, and even the fact that she had never before tasted curry and drank glass after glass of water to cool her palate only added to her charm … Winnie has laughingly told people that I never proposed to her, but I always told her that I asked her on our very first date and that I simply took it for granted from that day forward”. Unlike his first marriage, the couple observed most of the traditional requirements, including payment of lobola, and were married in a local church in Bizana on June 14. There was no time (or money) for a honeymoon – Nelson had to appear in court for the continuing Treason Trial and anyway his banning order had only been relaxed for six days. [Back to top] The Trials Forced to live apart from his family (and he and Winnie by now had two daughters, Zenani born that their While he was in jail his mother and son died, his wife was banned and subjected to continuous arrest and harassment, and the liberation movement was reduced to isolated groups of activists. . [Back to top] Negotiating Peace In a life that symbolises the triumph of the human spirit, Nelson Mandela accepted the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize (along with FW de Klerk) on behalf of all South Africans who suffered and sacrificed so much to bring peace to our land. The era of apartheid formally came to an end on the April 27, 1994, when Nelson Mandela voted for the first time in his life – along with his people. However, long before that date it had become clear, even before the start of negotiations at the World Trade Centre in Kempton Park, that the ANC was increasingly charting the future of South Africa. Rolihlahla Nelson Dalibunga Mandela was inaugurated as President of a democratic South Africa on May 10, 1994. In his inauguration speech he said: “We dedicate this day to all the heroes and heroines in this country and the rest of the world who sacrificed in many ways and surrendered their lives so that we could be free. Their dreams have become reality. Freedom is their reward. We are both humbled and elevated by the honour and privilege that you, the people of South Africa, have bestowed on us, as the first President of a united, democratic, non-racial and non-sexist government. “We understand it still that there is no easy road to freedom. We know it well that none of us acting alone can achieve success. We must therefore act together as a united people, for national reconciliation, for nation building, for the birth of a new world. Let there be justice for all. Let there be peace for all. Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all. Let each know that for each the body, the mind and the soul have been freed to fulfil themselves. Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another and suffer the indignity of being the skunk of the world. Let freedom reign.” Mr Mandela stepped down in 1999 after one term as President – but for him there has been no real retirement. He set up three foundations bearing his name: The Nelson Mandela Foundation, The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund and The Mandela-Rhodes Foundation. Until very recently his schedule has been relentless. But during this period he has had the love and support of his large family – including his wife Graça Machel, whom he married on his 80th birthday in 1998. In April 2007 Mandla Mandela, grandson of Nelson and son of Makgatho Mandela who died in 2005, was installed as head of the Mvezo Traditional Council at an ubeko ("anointment") ceremony at the Mvezo Great Place, the seat of the Madiba clan. Nelson Mandela never wavered in his devotion to democracy, equality and learning. Despite terrible provocation, he has never answered racism with racism. His life has been an inspiration, in South Africa and throughout the world, to all who are oppressed and deprived, to all who are opposed to oppression and deprivation.  Read More