It takes a look at key events in Nelson Mandela's life
and fight for freedom:
| 1918 |
Rolihlahla Dalibhunga Mandela is born into a tribal
clan in a small village Qunu, near Umtata in South Africa's Eastern
Cape.on 18 July 1918. His father was chief of the Thembu Tribe. He
is later given his English name, Nelson, by a teacher at his school. |
| 1919 |
His father is dispossessed on the orders of a white magistrate,
losing most of his cattle, land and income. |
| 1927 |
With the death of his father, he is placed in the care of the acting
chief of the Thembu clan, Jongintaba Dalindyebo. |
| 1942 |
Mandela is educated at university and qualifies in law. |
| 1943 |
Joins the African National Congress (ANC), initially as an activist. |
| 1944 |
With close friends Oliver Tambo and Walter Sislu, Mr Mandela forms
the Youth League of the ANC. Marries his first wife, Evelyn Mase.
They were divorced in 1957 after having three children. |
| 1955 |
The Freedom Charter is adopted at the Congress of the People, calling
for equal rights and equal share of wealth with the country's white
population. |
| 1956 |
Mr Mandela, along with 155 other political activists, is accused
of conspiring to overthrow the South African state by violent means,
and is charged with high treason. But the charges are dropped after
a four-year trial. |
| 1958 |
Marries Winnie Madikizela. |
| 1960 |
Police open fire on men, women and children in Sharpeville protesting
at the new Pass Laws which limited the movement of blacks, killing
69 of them. The ANC is banned and Mandela forms an underground military
wing. |
| Life Sentence |
|
| 1964 |
Captured by police after more than a year on the run, he is convicted
of sabotage and treason in June and sentenced to life imprisonment,
initially on Robben island.
His wife Winnie spearheads a campaign for his release.
Mr Mandela was kept on Robben Island for 18 years
|
| 1968 and 1969 |
His mother dies and his eldest son is killed in a car crash. Mandela
is not allowed to attend the funerals. |
| 1980 |
His friend Oliver Tambo, who is in exile, launches an international
campaign for his release. |
| 1986 |
The international community tightens sanctions against South Africa.
It is estimated that, between 1988 and 1990, the economic embargoes
cost the country's treasury more than $4bn in revenue. |
| 1990 |
Bowing to the pressure, President FW de Klerk lifts the ban on the
ANC |
| 1990 |
After 27 years of imprisonment, Nelson Mandela
is freed from prison.
The ANC and the white National Party soon begin
talks on forming a multi-racial democracy for South Africa. |
| |
Mandela and de Klerk shake hands
|
| 1992 |
Divorces Winnie after she is convicted of kidnapping and being an
accessory to assault. |
| 1993 |
Mr Mandela and Mr de Klerk are awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for
their efforts to transform South Africa against a backdrop of bloodshed.
|
| 1994 |
In the first multi-racial democratic elections in South Africa's
history, Mr Mandela is elected president. The ANC won 252 of the
400 seats in the national assembly. |
| 1995 |
South Africa wins the Rugby Union World Cup, and Mr Mandela is
publicly presented with a team jersey by the team captain, seen
as a highly symbolic gesture of unity between blacks and whites.
|
| 1998 |
Marries Graca Machel, the widow of the former president of Mozambique
on his 80th birthday. |
| 1999 |
Steps down as president to make way for Thabo Mbeki, who was nominated
ANC president in 1997. |
| 2000 |
Appointed as mediator in the civil war in Burundi |
| 2001 |
Aged 83, he is diagnosed with prostate cancer. |
LEARNING ENGLISH:
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