Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was
born in Transkei, South Africa on July 18, 1918. His father was
Chief Henry Mandela of the Tembu Tribe. Mandela himself was
educated at University College of Fort Hare and the University of
Witwatersrand and qualified in law in 1942. He joined the African
National Congress in 1944 and was engaged in resistance against
the ruling National Party's apartheid policies after 1948. He
went on trial for treason in 1956-1961 and was acquitted in
1961.
After the banning of the ANC in 1960, Nelson Mandela argued for
the setting up of a military wing within the ANC. In June 1961,
the ANC executive considered his proposal on the use of violent
tactics and agreed that those members who wished to involve
themselves in Mandela's campaign would not be stopped from doing
so by the ANC. This led to the formation of Umkhonto we Sizwe.
Mandela was arrested in 1962 and sentenced to five years'
imprisonment with hard labour. In 1963, when many fellow leaders
of the ANC and the Umkhonto we Sizwe were arrested, Mandela was
brought to stand trial with them for plotting to overthrow the
government by violence. His statement from the dock received
considerable international publicity. On June 12, 1964, eight of
the accused, including Mandela, were sentenced to life
imprisonment. From 1964 to 1982, he was incarcerated at Robben
Island Prison, off Cape Town; thereafter, he was at Pollsmoor
Prison, nearby on the mainland.
During his years in prison, Nelson Mandela's reputation grew
steadily. He was widely accepted as the most significant black
leader in South Africa and became a potent symbol of resistance
as the anti-apartheid movement gathered strength. He consistently
refused to compromise his political position to obtain his
freedom.
Nelson Mandela was released on February 11, 1990. After his
release, he plunged himself wholeheartedly into his life's work,
striving to attain the goals he and others had set out almost
four decades earlier. In 1991, at the first national conference
of the ANC held inside South Africa after the organization had
been banned in 1960, Mandela was elected President of the ANC
while his lifelong friend and colleague, Oliver Tambo, became the
organisation's National Chairperson.
