Unit-9 Democracy and Human Rights
Inauguration Speech of Nelson Mandela
Before You Read
a. Work in pairs. Look at the photos and share what you know about them.
b. What do these individuals share in common?
Now, read a short biography of Nelson Mandela and his Inauguration Speech.
Nelson Mandela, in full Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, byname Madiba, (born July 18,
1918 — died December 5, 2013), was a black nationalist and the first black president of
South Africa (1994–99). He fought against apartheid, a policy that governed relations
between South Africa’s white minority and nonwhite majority and sanctioned racial
segregation and political and economic discrimination against nonwhites.
He sacrificed his private life and his youth for his people. He spent 27 years in prison
for his protests and became the world's most famous political prisoner. He continued to
fight until peace, justice and stability was established in the country. Later, he became
the first Black President of South Africa through the democratic election. Nelson
Mandela was born in Transkei, South Africa. He was a member of the Thembu tribe,
and his father was the chief of the Thembu people. He got a good modern education.
When he was sixteen, he was sent to a boarding school. He attended South African
80 English: Grade 11
Native College (later the University of Fort Hare) and studied law at the University
of the Witwatersrand; he later passed the qualification exam to become a lawyer.
In 1944, he joined the African National Congress (ANC) and continued to oppose
the apartheid policies of the ruling National Party. Nelson and the other ANC leaders
organized strikes and several other protests. Mandela was charged with organizing an
armed wing of the ANC, and was arrested in 1962. As a result, he was sentenced to life
imprisonment.
Nelson Mandela was the most famous prisoner in the world for his anti-apartheid
movement. He refused to compromise his political position to obtain his personal
freedom from the prison. He wanted all people of all races to have equal rights in
South Africa. 'Free Mandela' became a rallying cry throughout the world.
After a long campaign of resistance within South Africa and the international pressure,
President F.W. de Klerk released Mandela from prison in 1990, after 27 years. After
his release, Mandela continued his campaign to end apartheid, and establish justice
and peace in South Africa. As a result, Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
in 1993.
One year later in April 1994, a national election was held, and that was open to all
South Africans. Nelson Mandela, who represented the ANC, won the election and
became the first Black President of South Africa. The inauguration of South Africa's
first Black President was attended by politicians and dignitaries from more than 140
countries around the world.
Here is the Inaugural Speech delivered by Nelson Mandela in Pretoria, the capital
of South Africa, on May 10, 1994:
Your Majesties, Your Royal Highnesses,
Distinguished Guests, Comrades and Friends!
Today, all of us do, by our presence here, and by
our celebrations in other parts of our country and the
world, confer glory and hope to newborn liberty.
Out of the experience of an extraordinary human disaster that lasted too long, must be
born a society of which all humanity will be proud.
Our daily deeds as ordinary South Africans must produce an actual South African
reality that will reinforce humanity’s belief in justice, strengthen its confidence in the
nobility of the human soul and sustain all our hopes for a glorious life for all.
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All this we owe both to ourselves and to the people of the world who are so well
represented here today.
To my compatriots, I have no hesitation in saying that each one of us is as intimately
attached to the soil of this beautiful country as are the famous jacaranda trees of Pretoria
and the mimosa trees of the bushveld.
Each time one of us touches the soil of this land, we feel a sense of personal renewal.
The national mood changes as the seasons change.
We are moved by a sense of joy and exhilaration when the grass turns green and the
flowers bloom.
That spiritual and physical oneness we all share with this common homeland explains
the depth of the pain we all carried in our hearts as we saw our country tear itself apart
in a terrible conflict, and as we saw it spurned, outlawed and isolated by the people
of the world, precisely because it has become the universal base of the pernicious
ideology and practice of racism and racial oppression.
We, the people of South Africa, feel fulfilled that humanity has taken us back into its
bosom, that we, who were outlaws not so long ago, have today been given the rare
privilege to be host to the nations of the world on our own soil.
We thank all our distinguished international guests for having come to take possession
with the people of our country of what is, after all, a common victory for justice, for
peace, for human dignity.
We trust that you will continue to stand by us as we tackle the challenges of building
peace, prosperity, non-sexism, non-racialism and democracy.
We deeply appreciate the role that the masses of our people and their political mass
democratic, religious, women, youth, business, traditional and other leaders have
played to bring about this conclusion. Not least among them is my Second Deputy
President, the Honourable F.W. de Klerk.
We would also like to pay tribute to our security forces, in all their ranks, for the
distinguished role they have played in securing our first democratic elections and the
transition to democracy, from blood-thirsty forces which still refuse to see the light.
The time for the healing of the wounds has come.
The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come.
The time to build is upon us.
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We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation. We pledge ourselves to liberate
all our people from the continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender
and other discrimination.
We succeeded to take our last steps to freedom in conditions of relative peace. We
commit ourselves to the construction of a complete, just and lasting peace.
We have triumphed in the effort to implant hope in the breasts of the millions of our
people. We enter into a covenant that we shall build the society in which all South
Africans, both black and white, will be able to walk tall, without any fear in their
hearts, assured of their inalienable right to human dignity - a rainbow nation at peace
with itself and the world.
As a token of its commitment to the renewal of our country, the new Interim Government
of National Unity will, as a matter of urgency, address the issue of amnesty for various
categories of our people who are currently serving terms of imprisonment.
We dedicate this day to all the heroes and heroines in this country and the rest of the
world who sacrificed in many ways and surrendered their lives so that we could be
free.
Their dreams have become reality. Freedom is their reward.
We are both humbled and elevated by the honour and privilege that you, the people
of South Africa, have bestowed on us, as the first President of a united, democratic,
nonracial and non-sexist South Africa, to lead our country out of the valley of darkness.
We understand it still that there is no easy road to freedom.
We know it well that none of us acting alone can achieve success.
We must therefore act together as a united people, for national reconciliation, for nation
building, for the birth of a new world.
Let there be justice for all.
Let there be peace for all.
Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all.
Let each know that for each the body, the mind and the soul have been freed to fulfill
themselves.
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.
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Let freedom reign.
The sun shall never set on so glorious a human achievement!
God bless Africa!
Thank you.
Ways with words
A. Find the words in the text that mean the same as the following. The
first letters are given.
a. the system that completely separated black people from white people
(apartheid)
b. formal objection (protest)
c. an ethnical group of people (Thembu)
d. an act undertaken to achieve a set goal (compromise)
e. the formal beginning of any movement (inauguration)
f. a strong feeling of excitement and happiness (exhilaration)
g. being set free from legal, social, or political restrictions (emancipation.)
B. Find these words in a dictionary and write their meanings as they are
used in the text.
liberty, conflict, ideology, oppression, privilege, dignity, surrender, reconciliation
Comprehension
Answer these questions.
a. What were the restrictions imposed on the Blacks in South Africa?
Racial segregation, and political and economic discrimination were the restrictions imposed on the Blacks in South Africa.
b. Why was Mandela arrested?
Mandela was arrested because he was charged with organizing an armed wing of the ANC.
c. How did he describe racism and racial oppression?
He described racism and racial oppression as the pernicious ideology and practice.
d. Why did he thank all the international guests?
He thanked all the international guests for having come to take possession with the people of his country of what is a common victory for justice, for peace and for human dignity.
e. Why did he think that people in his country had achieved political
emancipation?
He thought that people in his country had achieved political
f. What is the main point of Mandela’s speech?
The main point of Mandela’s speech is that people of South Africa should build a society where there will be justice, peace, rights, and equality for all people.
Critical thinking
a. What does Mandela mean when he says - a rainbow nation at peace with itself and the world?
Mandela intended the expression ‘a rainbow nation at peace with itself and the world’ to mean the unity of multi-culturalism and the coming-together of people of many different nations, in a country once recognized with the division of white and black under the Apartheid rule.
Rainbow is the combination of seven colors. South Africa is referred to a Rainbow Nation to describe the unity of various cultural, racial or ethnic groups in the country during the post-apartheid period, compared to the earlier division on the basis of skin color. In some South African cultures, the rainbow symbolizes hope and bright future.
Mandela anticipated the peaceful place where they could build the society in which all South Africans, both Black and White could live without any fear in their hearts with absolute right to human dignity. He wanted them to live and work together in unity like the band of colours in a rainbow. He wished they could have forgotten the vicious and repressive past.
b. Mandela should have avenged on those who imprisoned him for such a long period. Instead, he followed the path of reconciliation. Why do you think he did so?
Mandela led his country wisely, promoting reconciliation and living up to the expectations of supporters around the world. He successfully steered a country in chaos, towards a negotiated settlement. He validated national reconciliation, an idea he did not merely foster in the abstract, but performed with confidence in reaching out to former opponents. He never avenged on those who imprisoned him, tortured his people, and committed horrible atrocities against the non-white populaces in South Africa.
Mandela possessed the capacity of forgiveness. He believed that the feeling of rivalry, avenge and enmity divides the people and creates commotion and disorder. For him, a division in a society interrupts harmony among the people. Reigning over the transition from apartheid minority rule to a multicultural democracy, he saw national reconciliation as the fundamental task of his presidency.
Having examined other post-colonial African economies spoiled by the departure of white elites, Mandela reassured South Africa's white population that they were protected and represented in South Africa. He made his people believe that prosperity couldn’t be possible without unity. His aim was to liberate all his people from the continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination.
c. Why and how have societies struggled with segregation in the world? Do you find any evidence of segregation in your society? Discuss.
Segregation is the social separation of human beings on the basis of any number of factors, including race, ethnicity, or nationality. It is taken to describe a condition of inequality. Many societies have struggled with this problem in the world. Racial segregation is one of the most common forms of segregation and is generally forbidden, but can still exist through social norms even when there is no strong individual preference for it. Racial segregation has appeared in all parts of the world where there are multiracial communities.
The practice of segregation can also be intentional or self-imposed. Any form of segregation can lead to social, economic and political tensions. The treatment of minorities as inferior beings makes them avoid the main stream society. The idea of segregation denies civil and political rights of the oppressed groups. This established practice often hinders fundamental integration and equality. Such practice is habitually expressed, for example, in the rejection of equal opportunities affecting individuals’ living conditions. The oppression has been knowledgeable throughout history by women, members of castes, homosexuals, and assorted religious groups.
The Nepalese law doesn’t endorse any segregated society in terms of religion, caste and ethnicity. However, it is acknowledged due to its innate existing nature in the societies. Entry into the inner courtyard of Pashupati temple is strictly supervised by the temple security. Hindu and Buddhist followers of Indian and Tibetan descendant are only permitted into temple courtyard. Hindus and Buddhists followers of other than Nepali, Indian, Tibetan origin are forbidden into the temple complex along with other non - Hindu visitors
Modals: should and had better
Should- used to give advice and suggestions/ to mean that you expect something to happen in the future
My brother told me he's on his way. He should be here soon.
You should start waking up earlier.
She is late again. She should have gotten here before 15 minutes.
You should go to Raju’s if you want to eat amazing Mo: Mo.
Had better – used to give strong advice with bad consequences (warning)
You had better give up smoking or you'll die.
He had better not be late again or he’ll lose his job.
It’s a cold day. You had better wear warm clothes before going outside or you’ll catch a cold.
B. Complete the sentences with should or shouldn't. Use one of these verbs.
[drink, visit, leave, roam, quit]
a. You have really done a wonderful job. I recommend you shouldn’t quit it.
b. That's a very dangerous area. Tourists shouldn’t visit there.
c. I'm going to be late. Do you think I should leave now?
d. Children shouldn’t drink sugary drinks. It's not very healthy.
e. I have lots of homework. I shouldn’t roam here and there today.
C. Put in had better or should.
a. I think you should learn English to enroll a university course.
b. It's a great film. You should go and see it.
c. I have to meet my friend in ten minutes. I had better go now or I'll be late.
d. These biscuits are delicious. You should try one.
e. We had better get to the airport by 2 pm or else we may miss the flight.
f. When people are driving, they should keep their eyes on the road.
g. I should get up early tomorrow. I've got a lot to do.
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