Nelson Mandela was the first democratically elected president of the Republic of South Africa, a country that had suffered for centuries from the consequences of social and economic discrimination in its racially divided society. From his early understanding of democracy within the context of his culture to his persistent efforts and sacrifices in later stages of his life, he contributed to the idea of freedom and a free society. Through his political activism, he represented the ideal of a fighter for universal peace and justice.
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
He was born on July 18, 1918, in Mvezo, a village in the southeastern part of present-day South Africa. His ancestors from the Thembu tribe migrated in the 16th century from the Drakensberg mountain range to the south, merging with the Xhosa people. Along with natural resources, they shared a melodious language, appreciation for beauty, and an innate sense of justice. His father, Gadla Henry Mphakanisva, enjoyed great respect as a relative and advisor to the tribal chief. of a tribal king and as a co-founder of Bungi, geopolitical enclaves that, during the era of missionary protectionism, within the British Empire, guaranteed his people majority voting rights. He acquired the name Nelson, by which we know him, when his family converted to Methodism, while he was still in primary school. After the death of his father, guardianship over him was taken over by the tribal king, who enabled him to receive education in top-notch institutions for the black population located in missionary centers Clarkebury, Healdtown, and Fort Hare. He gained his first notions of a just society and self-governance by listening to oral traditions about heroes of his people and observing the protocols of royal assemblies in the capital city of Mqhekezweni, where he spent his youth.
Observing the tribal ruler and his sessions strongly influenced my later understanding of leadership… It was democracy in its purest form. Perhaps there was a certain hierarchy among the speakers, but everyone had the right to vote: the chief and those subordinate to him, warriors and shamans, merchant and farmer, landowner and worker. People spoke without interruption and meetings would last for hours… At first, I was amazed by the intensity and openness with which people criticized the ruler. He was not above criticism – in fact, he was often their main target. Regardless of the gravity of the accusations, the ruler would simply listen, not defending himself, showing no emotion…
Education
The Bantu Education Act of 1953 was promoted by the dominant nationalist party, thereby stamping apartheid on the education of Africans. Missionary churches found themselves under an ultimatum to surrender their educational institutes to the state. In response to these events, Mandela wrote:
Education is the greatest tool for personal development. Through education, a farmer’s daughter can become a doctor, a miner’s son can become a mine manager, and a farm worker’s child can become the president of the nation. The key is what we do with what we have, not to let what we have divide us… We were limited in equipment and resources for learning, but not in what we could read, think, or dream about.
Political Path
Before he began his political activities within the African National Congress (ANC), he grappled with ideological turmoil, from extreme African nationalism to communism and socialist models of revolution, only to later abandon them all, considering them burdens of youthful enthusiasm. In 1943, he participated in the establishment of the Youth League and the promotion of the Action Program. By employing progressive methods such as boycotts, strikes, and campaigns, he made nonviolent resistance more effective in opposing the oppressive measures of apartheid and strengthened the unity of the ANC. In this way, he bolstered the ANC, a multi-faceted organization founded in 1912, and promoted majority suffrage even to this day.
I have always believed that being a freedom fighter means suppressing many personal emotions that make an individual feel separate from the mass movement. He fights for the liberation of millions of people, not for his personal fame. I do not suggest that a person should turn into a robot and deprive themselves of all emotions and motives, but in the same way that a freedom fighter subordinates their own family to the nation’s family, they must subordinate their personal emotions to the movement… One philosopher once said that something is wrong if a person is not liberal in their youth and conservative in old age… I believed that the fight for freedom involved compromises and discipline that we resist when we are younger and more impulsive.
The fact that the crime of apartheid ever occurred will forever remain as an indelible stain in the history of humanity. Future generations will inevitably wonder what mistake led to the establishment of that system just before the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights…
Life choice – the fight for freedom
In 1949, Mandela becomes one of the leaders of the ANC. During the 1950s, he was arrested and imprisoned many times, and from 1960 onwards… If the ANC was banned, it operated illegally. In 1961, it formed a military unit called the Spear of the Nation under the South African National Congress. Its goal was clear and unequivocal: I have chosen this path, which is more difficult and carries more risks and burdens than serving a prison sentence… As for me, I have chosen my path. I will not leave South Africa nor will I surrender. Only through difficulties, sacrifices, and struggle can freedom be won. The fight is my life. I will continue to fight until the end of my life.
Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. People are the ones who have created and tolerate poverty, and people are the ones who will overcome it.
During the trial for charges of treason, which lasted for eight months, he admitted responsibility for planning actions, but not moral guilt:
I have always respected the ideals of a democratic and free society in which all people live together with equal opportunities. This is the ideal I live for and hope to achieve. It is the ideal of justice, human dignity, and equality, which is the foundation of the struggle I have chosen to pursue. and I am, if necessary, ready to die.3
No one is born with hatred towards another person because of their skin color, origin, or religion. People learn to hate, and if they can be taught to hate, they can also be taught to love, because love is much more natural to the human heart than its opposite.
Despite the ban, in 1962 he visited Ethiopia, Egypt, and Algeria and was arrested for illegally leaving the country and sentenced to five years in prison. In 1964, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for alleged planning of a coup and possible intervention by foreign armed forces. He spent the first eighteen months of his prison sentence working in a quarry, and he used isolation to study law by correspondence at the University of London. As the Afrikaner National Party began to realize that apartheid politics were ultimately unachievable, as the country was gradually turning into a battlefield threatening civil war, Mandela’s government decided to offer him “freedom” in exchange for certain compromises, which he Egoric vehemently refused, insisting on the release of all political prisoners, lifting the state of emergency and restrictions, and holding democratic elections. Newly elected President Frederik W. de Klerk, in 1990, after serving a 27-year sentence, released Nelson Mandela. In 1993, Nelson Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, and after the first democratic elections held in 1994, he became the President of the country. The ANC was entrusted with drafting the future constitution. Before the elections, he addressed the nation, saying: “Those of us who were recently oppressed are now rewarded with the rare privilege of hosting all the nations of the world in our own country. The time has come to heal wounds.”
“What matters is not just the fact that we have lived. The meaning of life lies in the improvement we have made in the lives of others.”
He retired from political life in 1999.
The dream of a free Africa and coexistence, even with enemies, has found its way. The chains of prison are not They never took away his dignity, nor did they stop him from exercising the freedom of making the right choice. Nelson Mandela will be remembered as a man of great courage and strong character, who fought for what he believed in – and emerged victorious! From the autobiography “Long Walk to Freedom”. From the autobiography “Long Walk to Freedom”. From his self-defense during the trial, “The Treason Trial”.