Thursday, 5 December 2013 – Former President Nelson Mandela dies
Revolutionary anti-Apartheid liberation leader and the first black president of South Africa Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela died at the age of 95 on 5 December 2013.
His vision and respect for human dignity brought hope to a country previously ravaged by injustice and discrimination.
Born on 18 July 1918, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela is hailed as the greatest icon of South Africa’s liberation struggle. Imprisoned in 1964 for his role in the African National Congress’ (ANC) struggle against the apartheid regime, Mandela was charged and convicted of sabotage and treason and received a life sentence on Robben Island.
After his release in 1990, Mandela received the Nobel Peace Prize, and was elected President in 1994 in South Africa’s first free, democratic elections.
Mandela died after a prolonged respiratory infection at his home in Houghton, Johannesburg. He was laid to rest on 15 December 2013 in his birthplace of Qunu, Eastern Cape. This year, the global icon would have been 100 years old.
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