NELSON MANDELA NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNING CHAMPION FOR HOPE AND HARMONY CHAPTER ONE 4 WHO WAS NELSON MANDELA Nelson Mandela was the first black president of South Africa He was a great leader Many people admired him for his forgiveness and courage Nelson Mandela is pictured here in 1990 shortly after being released from prison
5 WHO WAS NELSON MANDELA Setting an Example For many years black people in South Africa were not treated fairly Most of the people in the country were black but white people controlled the govern ment The government made laws that said where blacks could live and work Blacks were not allowed to own land or to travel freely The laws were part of a system called apartheid The government used apartheid to keep people of different races separated This whites-only sign was displayed at a beach in South Africa
6 NELSON MANDELA NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNING CHAMPION FOR HOPE AND HARMONY Mandela and others protested to end apartheid laws Mandela was sent to jail for life But in 1990 after 27 years he was freed South Africa was deeply divided After Mandela became president he tried to set an example He worked for peace and unity Mandela encouraged unity by supporting the Springboks the national rugby team during the 1995 Rugby World Cup At the time the team was white only The word apartheid means apartness in Afrikaans Afrikaans is a language spoken in South Africa It developed from the language of Dutch people who came there in the 1600s Quick Fact
7 WHO WAS NELSON MANDELA Life After Politics Mandela served only one five-year term as president After that he worked with groups that promoted peace and HUMAN RIGHTS He wanted to solve many problems such as disease and world poverty After he died people felt a great loss HUMAN RIGHTS are the rights that belong to everyone such as the right to freedom the right to live and the right to believe what one chooses Vocabulary
