Std.10 English(CBSE) – Nelson Mandela – Long walk To Freedom

*        Nelson Mandela , the first Black president of South Africa, narrates his feeling at the swearing ceremony.

*        The African people witnessed this ceremony after more than 3 centuries of the white rule.

*        It was the swearing ceremony of the first democratic nonracial government .

* On this historic event , he expressed the historic lines- ‘ Never again       shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another.

* The greatest feature of this ceremony is Nelson Mandela was sworn in as the first black president of south Africa on May 10, 1994.

*        There was a huge gathering of international leaders and dignitaries in     union Building in Pretoria.

*        Nelson Mandela addressed with zest and enthusiasm insisting the values of justice peace and human dignity .

*        He promised and pledged to liberate his people from the mire of               poverty, suffering and discrimination.

* Time changes the slot, the officers who could have caught and jailed him, they saluted him with honour.

* To show military loyalty towards the new president, jets and helicopters arranged a colourful show in the sky.

* Two national anthems (Nkosi sikelel by the whites) and (Die stem by the / blacks) were sung on this occasion.

* In his address, Nelson Mandela recalled and remembered all the great leaders who sacrificed their lives for the freedom of their country.

*        He pays homage to all the martyrs. Who sacrificed their lives for the         country.

*        He mentioned them as them men of  uncommon courage, wisdom and generosity.

*        He points out that Africa is bestowed    with minerals and gems but he    thinks that   the greatest wealth of Africa is African people.

*        He further points out that no one is born hating another person because of colour, caste, creed or religion if they learn to hate, they should be taught to love.

*        He says that love comes naturally through heart, he gives the example of the jail officers.

*        In the beginning he was the witness of the white’s dominance over the black, in the last decades of the twentieth century he experienced change in the attitude.

*        He was overwhelmed with a sense of victory when he found the change in the attitude of the white.

*        He defines the definition of courage in a very prospective way. He             mentions that courage doesn’t mean absence of fear, instead courage means victory over fear.

*        Now he talks about freedom, he thinks that every one is born to be free, when he was within his family sphere, he was free. When he wanted a freedom at mass level, he had to suffer.

*        For this freedom, he had to compromise his freedom by sacrificing his  comfort family life.

*        This sense of freedom has changed him from a fearful person to fearless   person he thinks that real freedom means equal right for everyone.

*        Now he talks about a man’s duties. Man has to perform twin duties, one for his family, society and second for his country.

*        Nelson Mandela thinks that it is very difficult to carry on both these         duties simultaneously.

*        He expects that people should live with dignity and respect.

*        He wanted that oppressor and the oppressed should be liberated,              Actually both are robbed of their humanity.