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Quoted By:
NELSON MANDELA, 1918-2013
World mourns freedom's hero
Outpouring of grief over death of anti-apartheid icon; S.Africans worried about racial tensions re-emerging
IN LIFE, Mr Nelson Mandela brought millions of people together through his fearless fight against apartheid, and inspired even more by transforming race-torn South Africa into a democratic "Rainbow Nation".
In death, he united the world one last time in an extraordinary show of grief that stretched from Harlem in the United States to Paris and Beijing.
Flags flew at half-mast in many world capitals yesterday and tributes flowed non-stop as word spread that he had succumbed to a lung infection he had spent months battling. He was 95.
He was surrounded by his family when he died at his Johannesburg home. His body was later taken to a military morgue in the South African capital.
Across South Africa, many poured into the streets to mourn the death of the country's first black president with song, dance and prayer. But some worried aloud about the return of racial tensions in his absence.
Anixieties about the future, however, will have to take a back seat to massive preparations for a state funeral and an elaborate week-long farewell.
An open-air memorial service will be held on Tuesday at the site of the 2010 World Cup Final, the Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg. Mr Mandela will lie in state for the following three days before his burial on Dec 15 at his ancestral home of Qunu in South Africa's Eastern Cape.
World leaders are expected to attend the state funeral, including US President Barack Obama, who said Mr Mandela "now belongs to the ages".
South African President Jacob Zuma announced the death in a live televised speech: "Our nation has lost its greatest son; our people have lost a father."
Mr Mandela is survived by three daughters, 18 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and three step-grandchildren. He had four stepchildren from his third marriage.
The former South African leader was born Rolihlahla Mandela on July 18, 1918, into a royal family in the Eastern Cape. He forsook a life of comfort to join the fight against apartheid, a system that granted most socioeconomic benefits to whites in South Africa and denied them to blacks.
He received a life sentence at age 46 and was banished to the infamous Robben Island prison. He was 71 when he regained his freedom.
Yet, he did not pursue vengeance on his release in 1990. Instead, he engaged in tough negotiations with the white governemnt and his own fractious allies, helping to usher in a post-apartheid South Africa with relatively little bloodshed.
In 1993, he and Mr F.W. de Klerk, South Africa's last apartheid-era president, were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Mr Mandela took office in 1994 after a landmark election for all races, but chose to step down after a single five-year term.
In his later years, he often hospitalised for respiratory problems stemming from tuberculosis, which he contracted while in jail. He was recently released from hospital in September, following a three-month battle with a lung infection that triggered numerous rumours about his death.
Summing up Mr Mandela's legacy, Mr de Klerk said: "Never and never again should there be in South Africa the suppression of anyone by another."
MOMENTOUS MOMENTS IN THE LIFE OF A LEADER
Mr Nelson Mandela's milestones, told partly in his own words:
APRIL 20, 1964:
Charged with sabotage, Mr Mandela delivered a statement during his trial in Pretoria that revealed the depth of his resolve in the fight against apartheid.
"During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people.
"I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope for live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."
FEB 11, 1990:
He walked out of Victor Verster prison near Cape Town after 27 years of imprisonment.
"As I finally walked through those gates to enter a car on the other side, I felt -even at the age of 71 - that my life was beginning anew."
MAY 10, 1994:
Mr Mandela became the first black president of South Africa after democratic elections.
"Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another and suffer the indignity of being the skunk of the world."
JULY 11, 2010:
A smiling Mr Mandela waved to the crowd at South Africa's Soccer City stadium during the closing ceremony of the World Cup. He did not address the crowd on that emotional day in the stadium. It was his last public appearance.
World mourns freedom's hero
Outpouring of grief over death of anti-apartheid icon; S.Africans worried about racial tensions re-emerging
IN LIFE, Mr Nelson Mandela brought millions of people together through his fearless fight against apartheid, and inspired even more by transforming race-torn South Africa into a democratic "Rainbow Nation".
In death, he united the world one last time in an extraordinary show of grief that stretched from Harlem in the United States to Paris and Beijing.
Flags flew at half-mast in many world capitals yesterday and tributes flowed non-stop as word spread that he had succumbed to a lung infection he had spent months battling. He was 95.
He was surrounded by his family when he died at his Johannesburg home. His body was later taken to a military morgue in the South African capital.
Across South Africa, many poured into the streets to mourn the death of the country's first black president with song, dance and prayer. But some worried aloud about the return of racial tensions in his absence.
Anixieties about the future, however, will have to take a back seat to massive preparations for a state funeral and an elaborate week-long farewell.
An open-air memorial service will be held on Tuesday at the site of the 2010 World Cup Final, the Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg. Mr Mandela will lie in state for the following three days before his burial on Dec 15 at his ancestral home of Qunu in South Africa's Eastern Cape.
World leaders are expected to attend the state funeral, including US President Barack Obama, who said Mr Mandela "now belongs to the ages".
South African President Jacob Zuma announced the death in a live televised speech: "Our nation has lost its greatest son; our people have lost a father."
Mr Mandela is survived by three daughters, 18 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and three step-grandchildren. He had four stepchildren from his third marriage.
The former South African leader was born Rolihlahla Mandela on July 18, 1918, into a royal family in the Eastern Cape. He forsook a life of comfort to join the fight against apartheid, a system that granted most socioeconomic benefits to whites in South Africa and denied them to blacks.
He received a life sentence at age 46 and was banished to the infamous Robben Island prison. He was 71 when he regained his freedom.
Yet, he did not pursue vengeance on his release in 1990. Instead, he engaged in tough negotiations with the white governemnt and his own fractious allies, helping to usher in a post-apartheid South Africa with relatively little bloodshed.
In 1993, he and Mr F.W. de Klerk, South Africa's last apartheid-era president, were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Mr Mandela took office in 1994 after a landmark election for all races, but chose to step down after a single five-year term.
In his later years, he often hospitalised for respiratory problems stemming from tuberculosis, which he contracted while in jail. He was recently released from hospital in September, following a three-month battle with a lung infection that triggered numerous rumours about his death.
Summing up Mr Mandela's legacy, Mr de Klerk said: "Never and never again should there be in South Africa the suppression of anyone by another."
MOMENTOUS MOMENTS IN THE LIFE OF A LEADER
Mr Nelson Mandela's milestones, told partly in his own words:
APRIL 20, 1964:
Charged with sabotage, Mr Mandela delivered a statement during his trial in Pretoria that revealed the depth of his resolve in the fight against apartheid.
"During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people.
"I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope for live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."
FEB 11, 1990:
He walked out of Victor Verster prison near Cape Town after 27 years of imprisonment.
"As I finally walked through those gates to enter a car on the other side, I felt -even at the age of 71 - that my life was beginning anew."
MAY 10, 1994:
Mr Mandela became the first black president of South Africa after democratic elections.
"Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another and suffer the indignity of being the skunk of the world."
JULY 11, 2010:
A smiling Mr Mandela waved to the crowd at South Africa's Soccer City stadium during the closing ceremony of the World Cup. He did not address the crowd on that emotional day in the stadium. It was his last public appearance.
