Friday, December 06, 2013
Unknown
Silence Please !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"He is now rested, he is now at peace," Mr Zuma
said, as huge crowd grew outside the former leader's home. "Our
nation has lost its greatest son, our people have lost a father.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the Mandela
family."
The man credited with dismantling South Africa's system of
apartheid which institutionalized racism, Mandela was an international symbol
of reconciliation and human rights.
Brief History of his life
A trained lawyer who rose to prominence as a leader of the
African National Congress's
fight against the Afrikaaner regime, Mandela was
imprisoned in 1962 for sabotage and conspiracy to overthrow the government.
He served 27 years, mostly in the isolated Robben Island prison for political
inmates. An international campaign lobbied for his release, which was
granted in 1990.
At the end of his trial, Mandela gave a now iconic speech in
which he said: "I have fought against white domination, and I have fought
against black domination.
"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."
He served as South Africa's president from 1994-99.
Mandela last appeared in public during the 2010 World Cup hosted
by South Africa. His absences from the limelight and frequent hospitalizations
left the nation on edge, prompting Zuma to reassure citizens every time he fell
sick.
"Mandela is woven into the fabric of the country and the
world," said Ayo Johnson.
Mandela was awarded the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize, the US
Presidential Medal of Freedom and is held in deep respect within South Africa
as the "Father of the Nation"
He was admitted to a hospital in Pretoria on June 8 to be
treated for a recurrence of a lung infection. A nation has been on edge
ever since as the former president fought to stay alive.
Adieu Madiba.
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