nelson mondela

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Nelson Mandela

A giant passes Dec 5th 2013, 22:22 by The Economist

The greatness of Nelson Mandela

challenges us all

AMONG Nelson Mandela’s many

achievements, two stand out. First, he was the

world’s most inspiring example of fortitude,

magnanimity and dignity in the face of

oppression, serving more than 27 years in

prison for his belief that all men and women are created equal. During the brutal years of his

imprisonment on Robben Island, thanks to his own patience, humour and capacity for

forgiveness, he seemed freer behind bars than the men who kept him there, locked up as they

were in their own self-demeaning prejudices. Indeed, his warders were among those who

came to admire him most.

Second, and little short of miraculous, was the way in which he engineered and oversaw

South Africa’s transformation from a byword for nastiness and narrowness into, at least in

intent, a rainbow nation in which people, no matter what their colour, were entitled to be

treated with respect. That the country has not always lived up to his standards goes to show

how high they were.

Exorcising the curse of colour

As a politician, and as a man, Mr Mandela had his contradictions (see article

(http://www.economist.com/blogs/baobab/2013/12/nelson-mandela) ). He was neither a

genius nor, as he often said himself, a saint. Some of his early writings were banal Marxist

ramblings, even if the sense of anger with which they were infused was justifiable. But his

of 10Nelson Mandela: A giant passes | The Economist

16/09/1392http://www.economist.com/blogs/baobab/2013/12/nelson-mandela-0/print

charisma was evident from his youth. He was a born leader who feared nobody, debased

himself before no one and never lost his sense of humour. He was handsome and

comfortable in his own skin. In a country in which the myth of racial superiority was

enshrined in law, he never for a moment doubted his right, and that of all his compatriots, to

equal treatment. Perhaps no less remarkably, once the majority of citizens were able to have

their say he never for a moment denied the right of his white compatriots to equality. For all

the humiliation he suffered at the hands of white racists before he was released in 1990, he

was never animated by feelings of revenge. He was himself utterly without prejudice, which

is why he became a symbol of tolerance and justice across the globe.

Perhaps even more important for the future of his country was his ability to think deeply,

and to change his mind. When he was set free, many of his fellow members of the African

National Congress (ANC) remained dedicated disciples of the dogma promoted by their

party’s supporter, the Soviet Union, whose own sudden implosion helped shift the global

balance of power that in turn contributed to apartheid’s demise. Many of his comrades were

simultaneously members of the ANC and the South African Communist Party who hoped to

dismember the capitalist economy and bring its treasure trove of mines and factories into

public ownership. Nor was the ANC convinced that a Westminster-style parliamentary

democracy—with all the checks and balances of bourgeois institutions, such as an

independent judiciary—was worth preserving, perverted as it had been under apartheid.

Mr Mandela had himself harboured such doubts. But immediately before and after his

release from prison, he sought out a variety of opinions among those who, unlike himself,

had been fortunate enough to roam the world and compare competing systems. He listened

and pondered—and decided that it would be better for all his people, especially the poor

black majority, if South Africa’s existing economic model were drastically altered but not

destroyed, and if a liberal democracy, under a universal franchise, were kept too.

That South Africa did, in the end, move with relatively little bloodshed to become a

multiracial free-market democracy was indeed a near-miracle for which the whole world

must thank him. The country he leaves behind is a far better custodian of human dignity

than the one whose first democratically elected president he became in 1994. A self-confident

black middle class is emerging. Democracy is well-entrenched, with regular elections, a

vibrant press, generally decent courts and strong institutions. And South Africa still has

easily sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest and most sophisticated economy.

But since Mr Mandela left the presidency in 1999 his beloved country has disappointed

under two sorely flawed leaders, Thabo Mbeki and now Jacob Zuma. While the rest of

Africa’s economy has perked up, South Africa’s has stumbled. Nigeria’s swelling GDP is



closing in on South Africa’s. Corruption and patronage within the ANC have become

increasingly flagrant. An authoritarian and populist tendency in ruling circles has become

more strident. The racial animosity that Mr Mandela so abhorred is infecting public

discourse. The gap between rich and poor has remained stubbornly wide. Barely two-fifths of

working-age people have jobs. Only 60% of school-leavers get the most basic high-school

graduation certificate. Shockingly for a country so rich in resources, nearly a third of its

people still live on less than $2 a day.

Without the protection of Mr Mandela’s saintly aura, the ANC will be more harshly judged.

Thanks to its corruption and inefficiency, it already faces competition in some parts of the

country from the white-led Democratic Alliance. South Africa would gain if the ANC split, so

there were two big black-led parties, one composed of communists and union leaders, the

other more liberal and market-friendly.

Man of Africa, hero of the world

The ANC’s failings are not Mr Mandela’s fault. Perhaps he could have been more vociferous

in speaking out against Mr Mbeki’s lethal misguidedness on the subject of HIV/AIDS, which

cost thousands of lives. Perhaps he should have spoken up more robustly against the

corruption around Mr Zuma. In foreign affairs he was too loyal to past friends, such as Fidel

Castro. He should have been franker in condemning Robert Mugabe for his ruination of

Zimbabwe.

But such shortcomings—and South Africa’s failings since his retirement from active

politics—pale into insignificance when set against the magnitude of his overall achievement.

It is hard to think of anyone else in the world in recent times with whom every single person,

in every corner of the Earth, can somehow identify. He was, quite simply, a wonderful man.



•Nelson Mandela (second from right), leader of the African National Congress, was among 156 political activists arrested and charged with treason in 1956 Source: Getty Images

•In 1964 Mr Mandela was found guilty of conspiracy, sabotage and treason. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and sent to Robben Island prison Source: AFP



•Mr Mandela and his then wife, Winnie, raise their fists on his release from Victor Verster prison in February 1990. He had been imprisoned for a total of 27 years Source: AFP

•Mr Mandela and Frederik de Klerk, the South African president at the time, were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 for their work to end apartheid Source: AFP



•Mr Mandela stares out of the window of the prison cell he occupied on Robben Island Source: Reuters

•Mr Mandela in 1994, during the presidential campaign Source: AFP



•Mr Mandela casts his vote for the first time in his life. The 1994 general election was South Africa's first democratic and multiracial poll Source: AFP

•Mr Mandela enjoys victory at the ANC's party headquarters Source: AFP



•President Mandela takes the oath during his inauguration ceremony on May 10th 1994 Source: AFP

•Mr Mandela congratulates Francois Pienaar after the South African rugby team that he captained beat New Zealand in the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup Source: AFP



•Mr Mandela stepped down as president in 1999 after one term. His deputy, Thabo Mbeki, became the second democratically elected president of South Africa Source: AFP

•Mr Mandela attends a rally during the 2009 general election Source: Getty Images



•Mr Mandela and his wife, Graca Machel, at the closing ceremony of the 2010 World Cup, one of his last public appearances Source: AFP

•Nelson Mandela, 1918 - 2013 Source: Getty Images

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