Nelson Mandela was an important man for the liberation of South Africa. He fought against apartheid, it was a separation of races. Mandela was born in 1918 from a tribe. His name was given by his teacher. He became a lawyer and he fought against the Apartheid with another lawyer: Oliver Tambo. Mandela was the vice-president of an important political party called “The African National Congress” (ANC). He adopted a policy of peaceful resistance, but there were a lot of violence towards black people. In 1960 the ANC became illegal but Mandela continued his activities and he was arrested for 26 years from 1964 to 1990 when Mr. de Klerk, the president of South Africa, freed Mandela. Mandela and de Klerk continued their fight: and in 1993 they won both the Nobel Prize. In May 1994, after the election, Mandela became the first black president of South Africa. I really admire Mandela for his pacifist policy and for his courage.

Apartheid

In South Africa, there was a system of government called “Apartheid”. The word “Apartheid” was an Afrikaner word meaning “separate”. Black people and white people could not go to the same schools, they could not eat in the same restaurant or live in the same parts of the city. If they were ill, they had to go to separate hospitals, and they could not work together. Nelson Mandela, a black African man, helped black people to protest about the situation. He joined a political party called the African National Congress with his friends and helped black Africans with their legal problems. The African National Congress asked Mandela to lead a war against the government. He tried to do this, but he was arrested and put in prison. In 1990, President de Klerk ordered the prison to free Nelson Mandela after 27 years. “Apartheid” was only abolished in 1994.