Mr Nelson Mandela died at his home in Houghton, Johannesburg, on 5 December last year and this Friday marks the anniversary.
Rolihlahla Mandela was born into the Madiba clan in the village of Mvezo, Transkei, on 18 July 1918.
His mother was Ms Nonqaphi Nosekeni and his father was Mr Nkosi Mphakanyiswa Gadla Mandela, principal counsellor to the acting king of the Thembu people, Mr Jongintaba Dalindyebo.
His father died in 1930, when Madiba was 12 years old and the young Rolihlahla became a ward of Jongintaba at the Great Place in Mqhekezweni.
Madiba was a member of Thimbu royalty and his father was chief of the city of Mvezo.
He attended school and later college at the College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand.
At Witwatersrand, Mandela got his law degree and met some of his fellow activists against apartheid
He became a leader in the (ANC) and at first pushed hard for the congress and the protesters to follow Mohandas Gandhi’s non-violence approach.
At one point he began to doubt that this approach would work and joined an armed branch of the ANC.
He was classified as a terrorist by the South African government and was sent to prison.
Madiba spent 27 years in prison and was released on 11 February 1990 from the Victor Verster Prison.
His prison sentence brought international visibility to the anti-apartheid movement.
Once released from prison, he continued his campaign to end apartheid.
His hard work and life long effort paid off when all races were allowed to vote in the 1994 election.
Madiba won the election and became the president of South Africa.
There were several times during the process that violence threatened to break out.
Madiba was a strong force in keeping the calm and preventing a major civil war.
Nelson Mandela and FW de Klerk shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 for their work for the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South Africa.
He had six children and 20 grandchildren.
His death was met with a worldwide outpouring of grief.
We will always remember this man as he has made his mark and lived a remarkable life.
