After several passages in the hospital a few months, the former South African president died Dec. 5 at the age of 95 years. Nobel Peace Prize, he actively contributed to the fight against apartheid and initiated a policy of national reconciliation between blacks and whites.
Following a further deterioration of his condition, Nelson Mandela, hero of the anti-apartheid struggle just died Thursday night at 7:50 p.m. (8:50 p.m. French time) at the age of 95, leaving South Africa in mourning. Jacob Zuma, the South African president, announced the news to the world, making a long tribute to the man affectionately nicknamed Madiba.
For several months, the country is preparing for the worst, especially since the health of the former South African president has again deteriorated, doctors who ended up placing a respirator. But this is not the agony that will hold supporters of Nelson Mandela, but his incredible journey.
The fight against the political domination of the white race
Born 18 July 1918 in Mvezo in South Africa, Nelson Mandela remains best known for his struggle against the apartheid regime, and for being the first black president of South Africa. But his entry into politics, he has made relatively late, at the age of 26 years. In 1944, he joined the African National Congress, with the aim of fighting against the political domination of the white race and against segregation. A few years later, he became a lawyer and is engaged in a peaceful struggle against apartheid laws.
But when the African National Congress was banned in 1961, Mandela decided to embark on a more active and less peaceful struggle. He founded Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the ANC and then implemented numerous sabotage against government and military installations. But this struggle earned him to be arrested by the South African Police July 12, 1963. It is then sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labor, during the famous Rivonia Trial.
A symbol of the struggle for racial equalityBut while authorities thought to silence Nelson Mandela by sending in prison, the opposite happens. It gradually became a symbol of the struggle for racial equality. Across
the country , supports are more and more numerous, until the prisoner
eventually receive international and almost unanimous support. The
authorities eventually released Nelson Mandela February 11, 1990 ,
after 27 years in prison and while the ban on the ANC was lifted. The world's cameras are there to capture the event.
Immediately
after his release , Mandela made a speech in which he announced that
his main goal is to give voting rights to the black majority , whether
local or national elections. A year later , the South African parliament vote suppression laws last pillars of apartheid still in force in the country.
Nobel Peace PrizeIn
1993 , Nelson Mandela and Frederik de Klerk ( South African president
at the time ) jointly receive the Nobel Peace Prize for " their work for
the peaceful elimination of apartheid and the establishment of
foundations Africa a new and democratic South . " On 9 May 1994 , Nelson Mandela became the first black president of South Africa. Throughout
its mandate last five years, he pursued a policy of reconciliation
between blacks and whites and fight against economic inequality .
After
the presidency, Nelson Mandela still take part in many international
events until 2004, when he announced his retirement from public life. This will not prevent South Africa celebrated its 90th anniversary with great fanfare , July 18, 2008 . But nearly five years later , the former South African president is overtaken by age. Hospitalized
on June 8 after a recurrence of his lung infection, his condition
worsens and then improves , before breaking down again. He eventually died at his home . Jacob Zuma announced that flags will fly at half of the country from Friday and this , until the funeral .
