Notes From a Native Son: Nelson Mandela and the Politics of Forgiveness

Hal Austin

Introduction:
Almost without exception, the entire civilised world came to a standstill on the sudden, but not unexpected death of Nelson Mandela. Only one nation failed to express any condolence and its prime minister, for security reasons, did not see fit to attend the formal service. But most people, through the developed and developing world, paid homage to the former South African president and US president, Barack Obama, used his full oratorical skills to remind us why Mr Mandela was seen as such a great man. Most emphasis was on has almost Biblical sense of forgiveness, a moral act that compares with any other person throughout human history. How could he, after 27 years of incarceration by one of the most savage regimes the world has ever seen, find it in his heart to forgive his oppressors? That he did so showed how he dug in to the recesses of his soul to find that kindness, courage, the ability to turn the other cheek, that this we all, black and white, rich and poor, old and young, are now agreed was exceptional.

But Mr Mandela was more than the forgiving angel, which undoubtedly he was; he was also someone with a deep respect for all he encountered, as we are told; he had humility and humour, understanding and foresight, and, of course, an ability to forgive which gave him that special public moral authority. But questions remain: moral duty often involves conflicting moral pressures: is forgiveness superior to justice?

International Human Rights Day

Felicia Browne
Human and Gender Rights
Peace Ambassador – Caribbean

Every day, we are confronted with some of the most inhumane acts of injustices and wonder what role Human Rights plays in our society. We are taught that every human being including children have fundamental rights that are unique primarily due to the fact that they are part of the Human species. Our human race is like any other species, have been given rationality as a means to separate us from other empirical beings. The purpose of rational thought and understanding has afforded us to have external knowledge of our existence, as well have techniques to manipulate our natural ecologies. However, our responsibilities to uphold sacred laws of human sanity and peace have continued to remain our great challenges.

Today, as we honour the human nature of each other, we should to reflect on our duty as brothers and sisters to encourage the good nature within us. We should also remember great leaders who have inspired our humanities- and the injustices that they too endured. How often do we think of someone who become a world leader for human rights and the unjust acts that he/she suffered, yet in the end, we recognize what their efforts were and the differences that they made. Our triumphs and histories are different but we are always able to connect with each other as human beings. We are human by our very nature to feel happiness, joy, disappointed, disgust, grief, love and peace. We are bonded by our human family and our destinies, though diverse many lead to a common cause, mainly peace, within our shared experiences.

The Dame Nita Barrow-Nelson Mandela Connection

BU is not the author.

Dame Nita Barrow and the Commonwealth Group of Eminent Persons who visited Nelson Mandela while he was in Pollsmoor Prison, South Africa, in 1986. He was transferred from Robben Island four years earlier, after serving 18 years there.

Barbadian Dame Ruth Nita Barrow (third from left) was the sole female of the high-level, eight-member Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group that visited South Africa in 1986. While there, the Group called on Nelson Mandela in Pollsmoor Prison where he was being held after serving 18 of his overall 27 years in detention on Robben Island. After six years at Pollsmoor, Mandela spent another three years at the Victor Verster lock-up before he was eventually freed in 1990.

Tribute to Nelson Mandela

Submitted by Robert Clarke, Vice President of Peoples Empowerment Party, Clement Payne Movement

Nelson Mendela, an ICON!

The lost of Nelson Mandela is a great lost to humanity. Very few people in the history of the world would have been important in changing world opinion. Nelson Mandela was one of those along with Mahatma Ghandi and our beloved Fidel Castro.

In the heyday of the Cuban Revolution in the 1950s, there was only one outstanding humanist besides Nelson Mandela and that was Fidel Castro.