My leader is: Nelson

Mandela
By: Samuel Perez Paloma.
 Biography
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela Mvezo, South African Union; July 18, 1918-Johannesburg,
Gauteng, South Africa; December 5, 2013) was a South African lawyer, anti-apartheid
activist, politician and philanthropist who presided over his country from 1994 to 1999. He
was the first black president to head the Executive Branch, and the first to be elected by
universal suffrage in his country. His government dedicated itself to dismantling the social
and political structure inherited from apartheid through the fight against institutionalized
racism, poverty and social inequality, and the promotion of social reconciliation. As an African
and Marxist nationalist, he presided over the African National Congress (ANC) between 1991
and 1997, and at the international level was secretary general of the Non-Aligned Movement
from 1998 to 2002
 7a
m
Ma azin
nde g t
la d hing
id s Ne
lso
n
 1. He was a "low-cost" lawyer for blacks

Mandela graduated as a lawyer and founded a

law firm with Oliver Tambo where blacks were
given legal advice and representation during
Apartheid.
2. He earned a career while in jail

Nelson Mandela spent 27 years of his life in the jails of the racist
Apartheid regime. Since the prisoners were separated, he was in the
lowest ranking (he was black and sentenced for political reasons) and
he went through far more hardship than any other prisoner. He did
forced labor, did not receive as much food as the others, and was only
entitled to one letter and one visit every six months. But Nelson
Mandela continued to fight from within and studied by correspondence
at the University of London to graduate in law.
3. He rejected freedom in favor of his ideals

Nelson Mandela, who was sentenced to life in

prison, was offered to be free in 1985. The
condition? Give up political activism. He rejected
the offer and issued a statement that said: “What
freedom is offered to me if the organization of the
people is still prohibited? Only free men can
trade".
4. He was the first black president in the
history of his country

Integrity, humility and struggle were the keys of Nelson

Mandela to be elevated to the rank of hero, which earned
him to be democratically chosen by the people of South
Africa to be their president. Once in power, Mandela went
down in history as the man who made possible a social
change that peacefully united blacks and whites, achieving
human freedom and equal treatment and opportunities. “If
you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to
work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner“
wrote the leader once.
5. In part, united the country through rugby

Sport moves masses and hearts and Nelson

Mandela knew it. So he used rugby, an ancient
symbol of white oppression for blacks, to unite his
people. South Africa hosted the Rugby World Cup
in 1995. The South African team, where there was
not a single black player, learned the Zulu anthem
and won matches. Until he reached the final. And
it was there that the world saw the power of
Mandela. The stadium fell silent and about 80,000
people, almost all white, chanted the president's
name. And then it became known: Mandela was
the president of blacks, but also of whites. He was
the President of South Africa, and South Africa
was beginning its change.
 6. Mandela is loved by everyone

This is not very common in these times,

but for South Africans, Nelson Mandela is
the most important man in the history of
the country. That is why they adore their
Tata Madiba and every July 18th they
celebrate his birthday, which is Mandela
International Day, a day established by
the UN. Nelson Mandela is probably one
of the most respected contemporary
figures in the world.
7. Solidarity causes moved him to the end

The Nelson Mandela Memory Center,

the Children's Fund, the Fund to Fight
AIDS (one of his children died of this
disease), etc. Nelson Mandela left the
presidency in 1999 but continued to be
linked to public life through his social
work. It is a representation of the fight
for human rights. The question is, will
the legacy of Mandela, the man who
made the dream of democracy and
freedom possible, remain alive?