Nelson Mandela As A Political Leader

When it comes to leadership and influence, this name appears in my head is Nelson Mandela. Nelson Mandela, or “Madiba,” as he was affectionately known, is arguably the most famous African. A man who gave so much for his people, even his harshest critics agree he was irrefutably an extraordinary man.

On July 8, 1918, the great leader was born in a South African village. According to the legend, the newborn child mechanically grabbed a tree branch that leaned over it. His father, without worrying, called him Rolichlahla, that is, ‘the one breaking the branches of trees.’ The name turned out to be prophetic, eventually it will break off not only the ‘branches’, but also to pull out the roots of the huge age-old ‘trees’ that have elapsed their age. However, his behavior in childhood is difficult to call exemplary: he, as part of a lofty bastard, slaughtered cattle, participated in fights, and then completely diversified when the elders of the tribe called him to answer. But soon the antics stopped and he began to listen with enthusiasm to the nostalgic narratives of his fellow tribesmen about the good old days before the arrival of the whites, when the people, led by a good king, lived freely and without any obstacles moved in their own country. The elders talked about the courageous struggle of their ancestors for freedom, the glorious heroes and commanders who defended their land. Rolihlachla dreamed of continuing their work and contributing to the struggle for freedom.

Nelson Mandela’s name for an average person will not say anything or will be associated only with a distant black continent. But for South Africans, this is the person who has turned one of the darkest pages of this country, an era of racial inequality. Almost by the end of the last century, the law of the Republic of South Africa divided the citizens of this country into white, who had all rights, and black, in which there was only one right – to work. This system was called ‘apartheid’ (in the translation from the language of the Boers – descendants of immigrants from Germany, France and the Netherlands, living in South Africa, this means ‘separate existence’). Apartheid ordered the black people and people of mixed origin (the so-called colored ones) to live in special reservations (bantustans), departure from which was punished by law. The country was forbidden to jointly study white-and-black high schools and schools. Such an unfair system gave birth to resistance not only from the side of the international community, but also within the country.

Nelson Mandela was the main inspiration and fighter against the apartheid regime, which remains the ‘symbol of freedom’ in South Africa. Now the concept of apartheid is increasingly perceived as something archaic, as a private, exclusively South African case of unsuccessful arrangement of inter-racial relations. It is fortunate that apartheid has been recognized as a threat to international peace and security, turning into a core of armed conflict in South Africa, in which only 11 states were directly involved in the region, and all the world community represented by the United Nations took part in creating the conditions for its peaceful settlement. And Nelson Mandela became alive in the hope of eradicating racism on the planet.

Nelson Mandela, who was the leader of the most authoritative organization of the NOD of South Africa, understood that in a bipolar, divided world, armed struggle is a compulsory, necessary means of confronting apartheid, reinforced by the momentum of the internal resistance of racism and colonialism.

In the 50 years Mandela was one of the most irreconcilable fighters of apartheid, he was repeatedly arrested by the police, but this does not stop him. And now the court sentenced the wrestler to life imprisonment. Place of detention is Robben Island Prison. Section ‘B, camera number 5. Space – two to two meters. The personal things of the prisoner, who was assigned the number 466, is a felted bedding in place of a sack and dishes made of stainless steel. The ascent of the fifth morning, the retreat of the seventh, the day is a tedious labor. In this place, Nelson spent as many as eighteen years old.

Necuba Fakou, mayor of Port Elizabeth, who also resisted the regime, recalls: ‘I was in Robben Island one of the youngest prisoners, if not the youngest. With Mandela I had to meet several times. Even in prison, he remained calm, benevolent, open, and at the same time an unshakable man. I remember how he said: ‘Here you can survive only when you are absolutely sure of your own rightness’ ‘.

By the end of the eighties, even the authorities of South Africa understood that the days of apartheid had come to an end. The resistance of the black population has grown. The countries of Europe and the United States imposed sanctions against the regime of the praetoria. Foreign investors and companies turned their activities into South Africa, fearing further destabilization. In the eighty-ninth year, Peter Frederick de Clerk, who headed the Ministry of the Interior, was replaced by President Peter Bout. De Clerk, who was subsequently dubbed ‘South African Gorbachev’, put forward a five-year plan to dismantle the apartheid system. Changes in the country began immediately after De Clerk led the South Aarhus. He abolished the main racist laws – the law on the registration of the population and the law on resettlement in groups, lifting the ban on the ANC and dismissed Nelson Mandela from imprisonment. The reaction of people to this was so stormy that it seemed from the side that all of the population of the country at the same time crazy. In 1994, South Africa hosted the first national elections with the participation of the African majority. Nelson Mandela became president. And in 1996, a new constitution of the country was adopted in South Africa, which guaranteed equal rights to all South Africans, regardless of gender, race, sexual orientation and religious beliefs.

At that time, the head of the ANC was already a Nobel Peace Prize winner, a man about whom he wrote books and filmed films. Mandela has become a symbol of freedom, has gained worldwide popularity. The campaign for his defense gained unprecedented levels and turned into an international struggle to change the political system of South Africa and the elimination of apartheid.

On July 2, 2005, in a speech at Johannesburg, Nelson Mandela said: ‘We live in a world where the accumulation of information and the development of knowledge is seven-step steps, but millions of children are not allowed to go to school. We live in a world where the global epidemic of AIDS puts the very existence of mankind in jeopardy. But we still spend more money on weapons than providing treatment for millions of HIV-infected people’.

Nelson Mandela is a wonderful example of a far-sighted leader with amazing qualities. He faced with a seemingly unrealizable task – the elimination of racial isolation (apartheid) in South Africa, for which he paid a terrible price – spent 27 years in prison. His commitment and willingness to sacrifice himself for the sake of the cause is unmatched. He went on to become the first president of South Africa, who was elected through a fully democratic election and devoted his life to the unification of the entire country.

The suffering and injustice that inflicted on people in a racial isolation regime could easily lead to a bloody massacre if a majority rule was introduced. The merit of South Africa’s transformation into an independent state with a peaceful way is largely due to Mr. Mandela’s generosity and moral courage. His willingness to abandon revenge has become an example for all. His restraint and tranquility demonstrated to people, not only in South Africa but also throughout the world, that tolerance and justice can overcome oppression and fear. He was a rare person, an incredible personality who used his energy and influence for the good of all.

Mandela was one of the few leaders who was able to inspire people’s confidence both inside and outside the country. He was able to unite the rival dissensions of South Africa, which were on the verge of a civil war. In 1993, Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, which he shared with former president of South Africa F. Clerk.

Mandela was an example of respect for justice, freedom and human rights. He gave us all a great lesson of reconciliation, social transformation and political transition. Only a person with a moral integrity, deep humanity, authority and a clear vision of the future of his country could achieve this. There is no better way to honor his memory than to reaffirm our collective commitment to respecting the values of deep and sincere democracy, in whose name Nelson Mandela fought without holding hands.

He has been a leader, fighter and source of inspiration for many people throughout Africa, Europe and throughout the world. Through his leadership and personal example, Nelson Mandela provided new content with words such as equality, freedom, justice, forgiveness and reconciliation.

The name Mandela is inextricably linked with an era in the recent history of Africa, marked by victory over apartheid and the construction of a democratic South African Republic. After undergoing difficult tests, Mandela remained faithful to the bright ideals of justice and humanity until the end of his days.

There is no politics in the whole world more respected and famous than he is. An unprecedented reputation of a righteous man and a martyr allowed him to judge everyone and everything impartially, without thinking about the need for a political compromise and maneuver, and to be friends with those who contend with each other irreconcilably. Mandela is an absolute moral authority in the world of modern politics, which seems to have left room for no moral, more absolute categories.

Mandela is considered by many as the father of the nation. He became an example of a firm confrontation of injustice and evil, and generosity in his victory over those who tried to destroy him.

‘I devoted my whole life to the struggle for the African people. I fought against the domination of the white race, and I fought against the dominance of the black race. I kept in my heart the ideal of a free democratic society in which all people live in harmony and enjoy equal rights. This is an ideal I want to achieve and to which I hope to live. But if it is necessary, then for this ideal I am ready to die ‘(From the statement in the court of Pretoria, South Africa, April 20, 1964).

Nelson Mandela was an outstanding figure of the 20th century, whose determination, courage and power were compared only with his kindness and forgiveness. He is always remembered not only because he has completed the regime of apartheid in South Africa, but also because he has made this change. He led the people by showing his example, believing that the only hope for the country was the reconciliation of all people, regardless of their color and religion. Nelson Mandela is a model of a person who never lost hope, but believed with all my heart that no injustice could last forever, and that the last word would remain good.

With South Africa’s accession to the post-apartheid era, the country was in a difficult socio-economic and political transformation that continues to this day. Nelson Mandela, as president and a great citizen of his country, made tremendous efforts to assert in his homeland the principles of democracy, national reconciliation and equality of all people, without distinction of color, national and racial origin. His services in the fight against racism have received the widest international recognition.

At 82 years of his life, he left the post of president, having managed to lay solid foundations of democratization of the country and a guarantee of getting rid of apartheid and racism in the most difficult internal political conditions of South African ‘perestroika’.

Nelson Mandela closed the door to politics, but did not turn away from people. He collected millions of dollars for his three charities, who built schools and hospitals in remote parts of South Africa. Thanks to him, South Africa became the venue for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Nelson Mandela remained a living legend. He lived 95 years. He spent 27 years in solitary confinement. In the process Mandela said that he was judged for the desire to build a South African democratic society, where all peoples and races would live in harmony and peace. His aspirations were realized. He changed not only the political structure and history of Africa, but also influenced the fate of each person, gave the spirit of freedom to the black continent.

The world lost its brilliant leader, whose courageous voice served as the moral benchmark in the struggle for justice. Regretfully, it must be stated that at present, the ideas of Nelson Mandela sometimes turn into the opposite.

Thus, at the beginning of 2012, the International Court of Justice in The Hague filed suit from representatives of the White House of South Africa, the so-called Afro-Bursaries, against the ruling party in the ANC, which unleashed ‘apartheid on the contrary’ – numerous facts of oppression of the rights of the white-skinned population of the country for the sake of the Negro. Over the past 20 years, the country was forced to leave about 1 million white-haired, tens of thousands of people were killed. Such facts, due to the so-called international political correctness, which emphasize the oppression of the rights of blacks, are not accepted, but silence only exacerbates the problems.

Much of the population of South Africa still lives in the absence of electricity and sewage, and about 40% live below the poverty line. HIV and AIDS are in the majority of the population of South Africa. The level of corruption and crime is also very high. South Africa’s daily life is far from Nelson Mandela’s democratic ideals, although his presidency certainly has had a positive impact on the social and domestic political processes in the country – the country lived far worse for him.

The name of Nelson Mandela has become a symbol of the struggle for democratization and better life for the disadvantaged and poor throughout the world, and this is his great humanitarian and ideological leadership mission. I think that he is a striking example of the active positive leader (according to Barber Presidential Character). His main leadership qualities are modesty, honesty, he was single-minded and showed grit and determination. He had a powerful presence and disarmed enemies with his smile. That is why I chose this person, and he certainly deserves such attention to himself.