The figure of Nelson Rohlilala Mandela is inexcusably linked to the period of the transition from apartheid to multiracial and multiethnic democracy in the Republic of South Africa. His integrity, conviction and strength helped him bring to South Africans of all origins and conditions the reality of a national figure that still symbolizes the hope and unity of a country that was on the brink of civil war, and that knew it. appease thanks to its redemptive capacity for reconciliation, forgiveness and belief in the rights of people.
Mandela has also been associated with the fatherhood of democracy in Africa, since it became synonymous with liberation and freedom, being the object of a special consideration and typical of one of the few great men who were left alive for humanity. During the transition period (1990-1994) and the first five years of black rule, he knew how to reach out and provide space to all racial, political and cultural groups -including his own white oppressors-, and despite deep frustrations that he often experienced during the negotiation period always filled former President Frederik De Klerk and other Afrikaner leaders with praise.
In his inauguration address on May 10, 1994, he spared no initiative, including meeting with the widows of oppressive white prime ministers like Hendrik Verwoerd, the great architect of apartheid. Mandela earned an even better reputation among white progressive elements and the predominantly white business class when in 1991 he censured the prospects of economic nationalization.
Mandela was convinced that the new South Africa - which would be reborn under his leadership - would turn its back on its shameful past and thus begin a long road to freedom and the construction of a new reunified country on the ashes of decades of oppression and abuses by the white minority in power.
AGE OF THE APARTHEID.
The Cape Colony was a region of South Africa, which was first under Dutch and then British control. It began with the founding in 1652 of Cape Town by the Dutch commander Jan van Riebeeck, who worked in the Dutch East India Company, after the Napoleonic wars on January 8, 1806 the colony was declared a British possession, and remained under your control. In all this time, first by the white settlers of Dutch origin (Afrikaner), an iron attitude of despotism and mistreatment against the black population of this territory was maintained, after the establishment of the Cape Colony in 1814 by Great Britain, the Racist attitude had not been supported by the legal norms imposed by the British.The outright racism of the majority of the Afrikaner population was not shared by the minority of whites of British origin nor by the colonial authorities appointed from Britain, but they insisted that racism against blacks was part of the struggle for 'preservation of their national identity ”being this the essential goal of their political activity. As early as 1910 and once internal autonomy within the British Commonwealth had been achieved, Afrikaner politicians insisted on maintaining a policy of de facto racial segregation, supported by the weakening of British control and issuing internal regulations to frustrate the political and economic development of the nations. Blacks, for example the vote was prevented and they were vetoed from taking positions in the public administration.
For the 1947 elections, the radical Nationalist Party won the elections in an alliance with the Afrikaans Party, mentored by Protestant pastor Daniel Francois Malan. Later, in 1953, after repeating its victory, the Malan government issued laws to officially segregate each individual according to their skin color, establishing a mandatory race registry under government control, prohibiting interracial marriages and punishing it as a crime. sexual relations between people of different races. Several districts were reserved in cities where only whites could live, forcing non-whites to emigrate elsewhere, in addition to prohibiting the black population from buying real estate within urban centers.
In 1953 segregated areas were established such as beaches, buses, hospitals, schools, banks, public parks and complete segregation in education at all levels. In 1954 Johannes Strijdom succeeded Malan as Prime Minister and added a ban on holding positions in the government and the right to vote except in a few isolated elections for institutions that were themselves segregated.
Following growing international condemnations since 1950, apartheid advocates argued that racial discrimination against blacks had its legal basis in that they were not citizens of South Africa, but citizens of other independent states (called Bantustans), therefore who lacked South African citizenship and had no rights to claim from the Pretoria government.
Thus, since 1960 the government of South Africa proceeded to create ten autonomous states to grant citizenship of these to blacks who constituted 70% of the South African population, a large part of the black population lost South African citizenship to receive Bantustan nationality where they resided. With this argument blacks were considered "passers-by" or "temporary inhabitants" who had to circulate through the territory of South Africa only if they had passports. Between 1960 and 1980, the government forced a large percentage of the black population to relocate to these territories and a total of 3.5 million individuals were displaced. In reality, all blacks were considered foreign workers without rights of any kind.
The population of South Africa also suffered from the determination that their skin color gave them for access and recognition of their rights, the “colored” were mulattoes from the mixture of Bantu and Khoisan with people of European descent for example - objects of open discrimination since 1948, separated into bantustans and without rights of any kind. In 1983 an amendment to the Constitution allowed those of color and Indians to participate in separate elections to form a parliament of color that acted subordinate to the parliament of the whites.
Increasing discrimination motivated the African National Congress (ANC), made up of black South Africans, to develop a plan of resistance that included public disobedience and protest marches. In 1955 at the Kliptown Congress, various organizations adopted a declaration of basic principles called the Freedom Charter - drawn up by the South African Indian Congress, the South African Congress of Democrats, the Congress of the Colored People and the African National Congress - characterized by his open demand that the people govern themselves, and already distinguished the creation of a State where racial discrimination was totally eliminated.
On March 21, 1960 a group gathered in Sharpeville to protest against the requirement that blacks always carry passes, the police fired into the crowd killing 69 people and wounding 186, all the victims were black and most were shot by the back. At this point the peaceful protest turns into violent. In 1963 Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd declared a state of emergency, allowing arrest without a warrant. The protests turned into sabotage through the armed arms of these parties. In July 1963 many political leaders were arrested, including Mandela. Mandela was sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of high treason along with 19 members of the ANC. At the Rivonia Trial on June 12, 1964,Mandela and eleven other political dissidents were convicted of treason and sentenced for 121 acts of sabotage to life in prison.
Starting in 1970, resistance to apartheid intensified through strikes and later as student protests led by Steve Biko. In 1974 the government passed a law that required the use of the Afrikaans language in all schools - this measure was very unpopular as blacks considered it the language of oppression - and on April 30, 1976 the Soweto schools declared themselves in default in rejection of the decision. On June 16, 1976, the students organized a march that ended in violence, 566 children were killed as a result of gunshots, which unleashed a wave of violence that spread throughout South Africa.
Although the white majority in South Africa agreed to maintain apartheid, there were many groups opposed to the regime, especially whites of British origin. These groups were centered around the Progressive Party led by Helen Suzman, which later found support from the Federal Progressive Party since 1977. Other groups of targets opposed to apartheid were the civil society Black Sash and the United Democratic Front - a multiracial political party.
After the Sharpeville massacre, a referendum was held asking the white people to decide for or against their stay with the United Kingdom. 52% voted against and South Africa gained independence from the United Kingdom while maintaining its membership of the Commonwealth. The African and Asian states intensified their pressure to oust South Africa, which finally withdrew on May 31, 1961 when it proclaimed itself an independent republic.
In 1962, the South African Border War began between the police first and the South African Defense Forces then against SWAPO - the independence guerrilla of Namibia. SWAPO organized its attacks from Zambia and from 1975 they started from Angola. The South African army was the most powerful in the region and could impose itself on any country on the continent. However, the massive support sent by the USSR, Cuba and Ethiopia stopped the South African advance, starting one of the longest wars on the African continent.
Malawi and Botswana accepted financial and technological aid from South Africa and even admitted to carrying out economic infrastructure projects based on South African capital, without preventing their condemnation of the apartheid regime. Ghana, Gabon, Liberia, Madagascar, Zaire, and the Ivory Coast also gradually agreed to maintain commercial and financial ties with South Africa, although none abandoned their official criticisms of apartheid.
The Cold War and the anti-communism demonstrated by Pretoria made South Africa a good ally of the United States, who supported it with arms and money in its war against communism in southern Africa. Thus isolated, South Africa sought alliances with countries in a similar international situation, so during the 1970s and 1980s they allied with Brazil, Chile and Israel. Unable to replace the great financial and commercial support from the United States and the United States, the votes of Chile and Brazil were vital to him at the UN. Its isolation in the international plane was increasing over time which severely affected the economy and the balance of the country. The war in Namibia was not over and could not be won, fighting for years the greatest battle in the history of Sub-Saharan Africa.Several European countries as well as Canada and Australia prohibited their companies from doing business with South Africa, and South African sports teams were prevented from participating in international championships.
When Desmond Tutu was designated as the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 in world public opinion, it was seen more difficult to justify the tolerance of several countries towards South Africa just for being an anti-communist bastion. The South African economy was based on the production of gold, platinum and diamonds without having other sources of export, the price of gold in turn fell on world markets which caused an economic recession in the mid-1980s. large labor force - as whites held all positions in the public administration and the armed forces - and a sustained demographic growth of the black population (85% by 1985) made it unacceptable and unsustainable that such a small racial minority imposed by it forces its political and economic dominance over the majorities.Economic sanctions began to be imposed by the UN and several countries demanded total divestment by their citizens in South Africa. The rand was so low that the government was forced to declare a state of emergency until 1990.
President Pieter Botha began with several policies designed to prevent discontent from growing among the population, allowing Indians, mulattos, and Asians to settle their homes in some white areas, the prohibition of interracial marriages was abolished and began to tolerate multiracial political groupings, without granting more freedom to blacks. White leaders understood that apartheid would not have been in existence for many more years.
Mikhail Gorvachev assumed command in the USSR and started perestroika and glasnost from 1985 which caused the Soviet government to focus more on its internal problems by removing funding from its allied governments around the world. He publicly negotiated with the United States the end of the war in Namibia, withdrawing his economic and war support from Angola and Cuba, and ending financial support for South Africa. With no other arguments to maintain, it was delicate for the US not to act frontally against apartheid, finally the suppression of its political support meant for Pretoria a vital blow to its already diminished economy.
In February 1989 President Botha suffered a stroke and was succeeded by his minister Frederik De Klerk, in the rest of the world the Berlin Wall fell and the 1989 Revolutions in Eastern Europe precipitated the crisis of Soviet communism, under this scenario De Klerk understood that it was time to manage major political changes in South Africa, initiating the first negotiations with other white leaders to end the racist legislation in force for the last 40 years. On February 2, 1990, in his opening speech to Parliament, he stated that the elimination of discriminatory laws began with him, lifting the prohibition against excluded political parties - the most relevant CNA - in addition to ending the state of emergency,the moratorium on the death penalty and the release of black leader Nelson Mandela (released on February 11 with 120 members of the ANC). Until 1991, the legal system on which apartheid was based was dismantled, repealing laws on segregation and deprivation of rights, also advancing in the construction of a new constitution and a probable date for general elections. Between April 26 and 29, 1994, the black population exercised its right to vote for the first time in its history, the broad winner being the leader of the ANC Nelson Mandela with 62.65% of the votes.also advancing in the construction of a new constitution and a probable date for general elections. Between April 26 and 29, 1994, the black population exercised its right to vote for the first time in its history, the broad winner being the leader of the ANC Nelson Mandela with 62.65% of the votes.also advancing in the construction of a new constitution and a probable date for general elections. Between April 26 and 29, 1994, the black population exercised its right to vote for the first time in its history, the broad winner being the leader of the ANC Nelson Mandela with 62.65% of the votes.
THE APARTHEID WITHIN THE UNITED NATIONS.
The end of South Africa's legalized racial discrimination system was on the United Nations agenda from its inception. On June 22, 1946, India requested that discriminatory treatment received by Indians in the Union of South Africa be included in the program of the first session of the General Assembly. In the following decades, the UN highlighted the heartless character of the regime, giving legitimacy to popular resistance, also promoting measures by governmental and non-governmental organizations against apartheid, instituting an arms embargo, oil embargo and boycott against apartheid in many spheres..
It is important to highlight the following events that occurred at the UN against apartheid:
- 12/02/1950: The General Assembly declared that a policy of racial segregation is necessarily based on doctrines of racial discrimination. 04/01/1960: The Security Council approved resolution 134 which deplored the policy and actions of the Government of the Union of South Africa that had led to the massacre of 69 protesters peacefully protesting in Sharpeville. The Council urged the government to renounce its policy of apartheid and racial discrimination. 04/02/1963: First meeting of the Special Committee in charge of studying the apartheid policy of the Government of the Republic of South Africa, to which the name was later changed. Name by the "Special Committee against Apartheid". 07/08/1963: The Security Council approved resolution 181,calling on all states to immediately stop the sale and shipment of arms, ammunition of all types and military vehicles to South Africa. The arms embargo became mandatory as of November 4, 1977. 11/13/1963: The General Assembly in its resolution 1899 on Namibia, urged all States to refrain from supplying oil to South Africa. This was the first of numerous efforts by the United Nations to enact effective sanctions in relation to oil against apartheid. 08/23/1966: International Seminar on Apartheid in Brasilia, organized by the United Nations Human Rights Division, the Special Committee against Apartheid and the Government of Brazil. 02/12/1968:The General Assembly called on all States and organizations to suspend their cultural, educational, sporting and other exchanges with the racist regime and with organizations or institutions in South Africa practicing apartheid. 11/30/1973: The General Assembly approves the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid. The Convention entered into force on July 18, 1976, of which Ecuador is a State Party. 01/01/1976: Establishment of the United Nations Center against Apartheid. 08/17/1984: In its resolution 554, the Council of Security declared that South Africa's new racist constitution was invalid. 16-20 / 06/1986: World Conference on Sanctions Against Racist South Africa,organized by the United Nations in cooperation with the OAU and the Non-Aligned Movement. 12/14/1989: The General Assembly adopted by consensus the Declaration on Apartheid and its Destructive Consequences for Southern Africa, calling for negotiate the end of apartheid and establish a non-racial democracy 06/22/1990: Nelson Mandela delivered a speech to the Special Committee against Apartheid in New York for his first time before the Organization 07/30/1992: Due to the increase After the political violence that put the negotiations at risk, Nelson Mandela called on the United Nations to send observers to South Africa. On July 31, the Secretary-General announced that he would send a group of United Nations observers. 08/10/1993:The General Assembly asked the States to immediately reestablish their economic relations with South Africa and lift the oil embargo from the date the Executive Council for the Transitional period in South Africa enters into operation. 05/10/1994: Assumes the first democratically elected non-racial government in South Africa came to power after the April 1994 general elections. June 23, 1994: The General Assembly approved the credentials of the South African delegation and removed the apartheid issue from its agenda. On June 27, the Security Council removed the question of South Africa from its agenda. October 3, 1994: Nelson Mandela as South Africa's first democratically elected president delivers a speech to the General Assembly.
THE POSITION AND DIPLOMATIC BELIEFS OF MANDELA.
Mandela's political discourse revolves around a diversity of interlinked concepts such as forgiveness, reconciliation, the multicolored nation, hope, ideals, and rebuilding his nation. In terms of foreign policy, it was known to position itself very openly as the model to follow in transition processes, the demolition of myths and the past, the transformation of the country and the promotion of a foreign policy in favor of human rights. His vehemence wanted South Africa to be regarded as a full and respected member in the concert of nations. He always made prevail his policy of preferences towards Africa, of non-alignment, of promotion of economic diplomacy and of the doctrine of universality,which implied reserving the right to maintain friendly relations with all the states with which they decide, regardless of their ideological or political orientation. She believed in a basic and essential way in diplomacy and in the peaceful resolution of conflicts and questioned the fondness of the Western powers for war diplomacy. He was undoubtedly a staunch defender of multilateralism and the role of the United Nations in world affairs.
Below I collect various facets, experiences and political anecdotes that Nelson Mandela promoted and lived always motivated by his beliefs:
- He was labeled a communist and an agitator. And very strangely, until 2008 he was listed on the FBI terrorist list, despite having all the power in his favor in South Africa, he never polarized society or adopted retaliatory strategies to take revenge. He always knew how to forgive.Despite Washington's opposition, he supported the Libyan Muammar Gaddafi about the Lockerbie catastrophe and through his intercession the Tripoli government accepted that on April 5, 1999 the two Libyan agents accused of the attack, Abdel al Megrahi and Al Amin Fhemah, were tried in The Hague by a Scottish court. That same day, the UN announced the suspension of the embargo on Libya. Cuba was the first Latin American country that Mandela visited, just released from prison, on July 25, 1991 he visited Cuba.The battle of Cuito Cuanavale was the center of his thanks and the point of pondering and admiration for the Cuban people. His flattering comments about Fidel Castro and the Cuban revolution were not well received by Cuban exiles in Miami. Today those same exiles react differently, highlighting in him their transition from violence to non-violence to achieve South African unity. His opposition to the apartheid of the Israeli regime against the Palestinians, visited the occupied Palestinian territories in 1999, equated it to the South African struggle saying in a letter to The New York Times: "… the Palestinians are not fighting for a state, but for their freedom, liberation and equality." The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS) identifies him as a great fighter. When Bill Clinton spoke with Mandela,Right after the Monica Lewinsky scandal, Clinton was reminded by some of the White House advisers about the ties between Castro and Mandela, and Mandela replied that his friendship with Castro is not Clinton's business. In turn, the South African politicians rebuked Mandela about the consequences that the visit would bring after the scandal, Mandela said: "We did not abandon old friends" and that the fact "made him really think." His political pragmatism and symbolism It earned him a multiple invitation to the White House despite having declared: "If there is a country that has committed unspeakable atrocities in the world, it is the United States of America." Despite Mandela calling George W. Bush "A president who has no prospect, who does not think properly",he received multiple mentions of admiration at his funeral calling him "one of the great forces of equality and freedom of our time." It is also known that in 2003 he called George H. Bush - father - by phone to urge him to contain his son from invading Iraq.
DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS.
Inspired by various passages in Mandela's life and as a reflection of the humanistic commitment that inspires our current foreign policy, Ecuador today opens its doors to people who require asylum and refuge, guaranteeing for them the humanitarian and legal assistance they are entitled to. This reflects a spirit and alliance with peace, with respect for the human condition and the repudiation of all forms of violence against vulnerable people, regardless of their ideology, social or cultural condition. Thus, based on these fundamental principles, South Africa, through Mandela, responded, criticized and accepted a diversity of positions, invitations and proposals from various countries in the world.
Below are several passages of the relations that Nelson Mandela maintained with various countries before, during and after his mandate:
- In the Canadian Parliament, after his release in 1990, Nelson Mandela said: “We come from a people who, because we do not accept being treated as subhuman, we liberate the dignity of humanity everywhere.” In 1992, together with Frederik De Clerk was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation for his efforts to end apartheid, and in 1993 both received the Nobel Peace Prize.His relationship with the Middle East was marked by his political thinking (socialist, anti-imperialist, African nationalist), as well as for his recognition of the support he received during the years he was in prison, the Ecuadorian Ambassador Leopoldo Benites Vinueza, was the permanent representative of Ecuador to the United Nations since 1961.In 1973 he became the 28th president of the United Nations General Assembly. It is well known that during the speeches that he had to present in the various forums and committees of the United Nations, he exposed and defended the idealism and injustices of apartheid. In the files revealed by the University of Kwazulu Natal in Durban the following reference could be found, being considered an ally of the black resistance:
| SOUTH AFRICAN INSTITUTE OF RACE RELATIONS
1973 R3-QO A SURVEY OF RACE RELATIONS IN SOUTH AFRICA Compiled by MURIEL HORRELL DUDLEY HORNER Research staff South African Institute of Race Relations ISBN 0 86982 077 X SOUTH AFRICAN INSTITUTE OF RACE RELATIONS PO BOX 97 JOHANNESBURG JANUARY 1974 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The new president of the General Assembly, Dr. Leopoldo Benites, of Ecuador, has condemned apartheid and expressed support for African guerrilla groups. |
- Mandela supported the demands of the Palestine Liberation Organization, but maintained a moderate position with regard to Israel. He firmly claimed the right of the Palestinians to self-determination and to have their own state (South Africa has had full diplomatic representation to Palestine since 1995), but also recognized Israel's right to exist within secure and militarized borders. December 4, 1997 in Pretoria (International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People), praised the leaders of both sides for the 1993 signing of the Oslo Accords, seen as an opportunity for peace. On that occasion he said, “I join you today in adding our voice to the universal claim of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to have a State.We would not live up to our own raison d'être as a government and as a nation if the resolution of the problems of the Middle East did not occupy a prominent place on our agenda. ”After being released in 1990, he expressed that he had been invited by“ almost everyone the countries of the world, except Israel ”. The Israeli invitation finally came in 1994, but at that time (in the middle of the peace process after the Oslo Accords) Mandela did not want to make a visit that would have had a strong political charge. In 1999 Mandela traveled to Israel and the Palestinian territories occupied in 1999. In Gaza he stated that "Israel should withdraw from the areas it has occupied in Arab countries: the Golan Heights, southern Lebanon and the West Bank." However, before traveling to Gaza, he had a meeting in Jerusalem with the then Israeli Foreign Minister,David Levy, at the end of which he admitted that Israel could not return the occupied territories “if the Arab states do not recognize it.” During his visit to the Holocaust Museum, he assured that he had felt “deeply hurt and at the same time enriched”, emphasizing the It is important for the world not to forget what happened Before the US-led invasion of Iraq, Mandela made clear his outright rejection of the war in a harsh speech he delivered at the International Women's Forum in Johannesburg on 29 January 2003: “What is happening, what Bush is doing is a catastrophe. The only thing Bush wants is Iraqi oil. There is no doubt that the United States is misbehaving.Why don't you try to confiscate your ally Israel's weapons of mass destruction? This is just an excuse to get the oil from Iraq. ”Mandela was outraged by the UK's involvement in the Iraq war and he phoned then British Prime Minister Tony Blair to express his anger: a mistake, a big mistake, why are you doing this after all your support for Africa? It will cause enormous damage internationally, ”said the South African leader. In 1999 he also made brief visits to Damascus and Tehran. Both took place in an atmosphere of diplomatic correctness, without criticism. In the available records of their public appearances there are no mentions of the lack of freedoms or the violations of human rights in these countries. About the then Syrian president,Hafez al Asad - father of President Bashar al Asad - limited himself to saying that “I am happy to be with a renowned and well-known president.” In Iran he visited the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini -founder of the Islamic Republic- and praised the Government of Tehran for having broken relations with the apartheid regime and said: “We are indebted to the Islamic Revolution.” As leader of the ANC in 1992 - not yet elected president -, he was widely criticized in Turkey for declining the Peace Prize Mustafa Ataturk, which had been granted to him in that country. He would not have wanted to accept the award due to the "human rights violations" committed by Turkey against the Kurdish people. Mandela ended up reconsidering his stance and finally accepted the award in 1999.He limited himself to saying that “I am happy to be together with a renowned and well-known president.” In Iran, he visited the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini -founder of the Islamic Republic- and praised the Government of Tehran for having broken relations with the apartheid regime and said: “We are in debt to the Islamic Revolution.” As leader of the ANC in 1992 - not yet elected president -, he was widely criticized in Turkey for declining the Mustafa Ataturk Peace Prize, which had been awarded to him in that country. He would not have wanted to accept the award due to the "human rights violations" committed by Turkey against the Kurdish people. Mandela ended up reconsidering his stance and finally accepted the award in 1999.He limited himself to saying that “I am happy to be together with a renowned and well-known president.” In Iran, he visited the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini -founder of the Islamic Republic- and praised the Government of Tehran for having broken relations with the apartheid regime and said: “We are in debt to the Islamic Revolution.” As leader of the ANC in 1992 - not yet elected president -, he was widely criticized in Turkey for declining the Mustafa Ataturk Peace Prize, which had been awarded to him in that country. He would not have wanted to accept the award due to the "human rights violations" committed by Turkey against the Kurdish people. Mandela ended up reconsidering his stance and finally accepted the award in 1999.In Iran he visited the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini - founder of the Islamic Republic - and praised the Government of Tehran for having broken relations with the apartheid regime and said: "We are indebted to the Islamic Revolution." As leader of the ANC in 1992 - not yet elected president - was widely criticized in Turkey for declining the Mustafa Ataturk Peace Prize, which had been awarded in that country. He would not have wanted to accept the award due to the "human rights violations" committed by Turkey against the Kurdish people. Mandela ended up reconsidering his stance and finally accepted the award in 1999.In Iran he visited the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini - founder of the Islamic Republic - and praised the Government of Tehran for having broken relations with the apartheid regime and said: "We are indebted to the Islamic Revolution." As leader of the ANC in 1992 - not yet elected president - was widely criticized in Turkey for declining the Mustafa Ataturk Peace Prize, which had been awarded to him in that country. He would not have wanted to accept the award due to the "human rights violations" committed by Turkey against the Kurdish people. Mandela ended up reconsidering his stance and finally accepted the award in 1999.he was widely criticized in Turkey for declining the Mustafa Ataturk Peace Prize, which had been awarded to him in that country. He would not have wanted to accept the award due to the "human rights violations" committed by Turkey against the Kurdish people. Mandela ended up reconsidering his stance and finally accepted the award in 1999.he was widely criticized in Turkey for declining the Mustafa Ataturk Peace Prize, which had been awarded to him in that country. He would not have wanted to accept the award due to the "human rights violations" committed by Turkey against the Kurdish people. Mandela ended up reconsidering his stance and finally accepted the award in 1999.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.
Modern Ecuador seeks to harmonize internal development objectives with a sovereign, fair, equitable, supportive and complementary international policy. Making known to the African countries their new development model under an integration agenda respectful of cultural and ethnic diversity, the environment, respect for rights and highlighting the great similarities that our peoples have. The nature of the human being is so complex that there is no other way to highlight the political example of Nelson Mandela, he was powerful precisely because of his ability to reconcile the apparent opposites, he is a clear speaker that the energies and exercises put with a clear determinant they will come to fruition knowing precisely how to align the differences between the opponents.
The sovereignty that we enact requires a foreign policy framed in international relations of mutual respect and cooperation. We seek African alliances that share our values and respect the principle of self-determination. African countries have opened their doors to their Ecuadorian brothers, showing that there are more similarities than differences among us and that our peoples yearn for peace and the constant search for mutual social development for our peoples.
The commitment that Mandela leaves as a legacy has however been relegated by heroic national pride - for example - associated with wars generally, it is not surprising that there are numerous museums and mausoleums dedicated to war, but very few celebrating the commitment made with diplomacy., Mandela is an icon of reconciliation who saved his people from a bloody civil war.
During his tenure and beyond, Mandela sat the chair of political magnificence. His ethics, honor and transparency was his letter of introduction. He was friends with both, without ever compromising his political perspective. A gentleman of diplomacy and respect for others. Today, modern diplomacy is far from the old clichés about diplomats - limousines, cocktails, lavish parties and luxury hotels - it is a race of responsibility, representation and image of the values that each nation wants to disseminate, and these are precisely the values that I share and admire about Mandela.
In recent years a new generation of "excellencies" has entered the Ecuadorian foreign service and the world diplomatic scene, the good news is that for the profession of diplomat and also for humanity Nelson Mandela left his great legacy of wisdom and empathy as references linked to freedom, the struggle of peoples for equality and love of the country that we all must profess. Congratulations to these new colleagues.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
- Páez Pérez, Pedro. Regional and Global Liquidity Arrangements for a more democratic and human World. October, 2010. Press releases. Ministry of Foreign Relations, Trade and Integration of Ecuador. 2012. Sub-Saharan Africa, Capitalist System and International Relations. CLACSO. 2011.Jovan Kurbalija. www.diplomacy.edu. Wisdom and empathy in diplomacy. 2012.South African Institute of Race Relations of the South. http://www.disa.ukzn.ac.za. 1974 Nelson Mandela International Day for Peace, Democracy and Freedom. https://www.un.org/es/events/mandeladay/ United Nations. 2013 José María Armenós Vidal. Politics and Apartheid. http://issuu.com/jmav/docs/pya. 2007 Nelson Mandela speech. http://www.juventudrebelde.cu/internacionales/2010-07-17/discurso-de-nelson-mandela-el-26-de-julio-de-1991/. Juventud Rebelde, Diario de la Juventud Cubana.2004.
Born in Mvezo (Eastern Cape province) on July 18, 1918, belonging to the Madiba clan of the Xhoza ethnic group, he was one of the 13 children of his father Henry Mgadla Mandela, who had four wives. He was the great-grandson of King Ngubengcuka and his mother was Nonqaphi Nosekeni Fanny, the third of Henry's wives. He passed away in Johannesburg on December 5, 2013.
Racial segregation system in South Africa and Namibia (then part of South Africa) that was in force until 1992. It means "separation" in Afrikaans (Germanic language derived from Dutch), widely spoken in South Africa and Namibia until now and consisting of the creation of separate places for different racial groups. Whites had exclusive rights such as voting and restrictions such as the prohibition of marriage or sexual relations between whites and blacks.
Born in Amsterdam on September 8, 1901, he was a South African politician and sociologist - Prime Minister of South Africa between 1958 and 1966, he was one of the creators of the apartheid segregationist regime, against the black majority. He was also the architect of the Bantustans, forcing the mass displacement of the black population. During his rule, South Africa separated from the Commonwealth and formally became a republic. On September 6, 1966 he was stabbed to death - in the South African Parliament - by Dimitri Tsafendas, a Portuguese black mother and a Greek white father, who opposed apartheid.
On October 12, 1991, ANC Vice President Nelson Mandela stressed that his party was prepared to abandon the long-held policy of nationalization if the business community could provide an alternative to correct the country's economic imbalances. The nationalization did not mean that the private sector will be excluded from certain business areas and reiterated that dialogue with the business sector guarantees growth and equitable distribution.
Long Walk to Freedom in English, is an autobiographical work written by Nelson Mandela and published in 1994 by Little Brown & Co. The book describes his childhood, coming of age, education and 27 years in prison.
The Commonwealth of Nations, formerly the British Commonwealth of Nations, is an organization made up of 53 independent and semi-independent countries that share historical ties with the United Kingdom. Its main objective is international cooperation in the political and economic sphere. It has its origins in the Imperial Conference of 1920, when the British government recognized certain self-determination rights of its colonies and that culminated in the Statute of Westminster in 1931. It is administered by a General Secretariat based in the city of London.
In his first speech of 1948, he said: "Today South Africa is ours again, God allow it to be ours always", the term included only Afrikaner whites. In those years, the white population was 21% of the inhabitants, 68% black and the remaining 11% mulattoes and Hindus.
The term began to be used from 1940. It has its origin in Bantu which means people in the Bantu language and in the suffix “stan” (land of) in the Persian language. This word was used to designate each of the twenty territories that operated as tribal reservations for non-white inhabitants in South Africa and Southwest Africa (now Namibia), within the framework of the segregationist policies imposed during the apartheid era.
Classified in four groups: white, black, Indian and mulatto.
Determining who was considered a mulatto was often complicated, going so far as to examine the gums of individuals to distinguish between blacks and mulattos. Despite receiving better treatment, the black population played a leading role in the fight against apartheid.
Immigrants from India and Pakistan, established since the years of British rule.
African National Congress in English and called until 1923 South African Native National Congress. It was founded on January 8, 1912 in Bloemfontein, with the aim of defending the rights of the black majority of the country.
In this trial Mandela declared: “I have fought against the domination of the whites and against the domination of the blacks. I have wanted an ideal democracy and a free society in which all people live in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal that I want to live with and achieve. But if necessary, it would also be an ideal for which I am willing to die. The trial was condemned at the United Nations and was a very important benchmark to implement sanctions against the racist regime in South Africa.
A medical student at the University of Natal, he was the motivator of the Black Consciousness Movement that advocated for the liberation of blacks, racial pride and non-violent opposition. He was arrested and beaten in Port Elizabeth, twenty-one days later, on September 12, 1977, he was found dead in a prison in Pretoria.
Her original name is Helen Gavronsky, born in Germinston on November 7, 1917, she was a South African activist daughter of Lithuanian Jewish immigrants. She stood out as a politician and activist against apartheid.
Acronym for South-West African People's Organization, it was founded in 1960. From 1966 it became a military organization that used guerrilla tactics to fight the South African government in search of Namibian independence. He fervently opposed the apartheid policy imposed by the racist regime in South Africa.
One of the longest conflicts in Africa and one of the largest, both in terms of the number of troops and tanks, self-propelled artillery, armored vehicles and aircraft used by both sides.
The events took place between 1965 and 1988 between, on the one hand, South African troops, from the Angolan group UNITA, against the Namibian members of SWAPO, soldiers from Angola and advisers sent by Cuba. The United States, Israel, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Iran participated indirectly from South Africa; and the USSR, Cuba, Angola and Ethiopia that fought alongside SWAPO. It concluded with the independence of Namibia and the withdrawal of the South African and Cuban forces.
In conjunction with Angola, the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale that occurred on March 23, 1988 and its outcome with the help of the Cuban military forces under the command of Leopoldo Cintra Frías, which led to the collapse of the then apartheid military forces of South Africa, stands out.. This defeat forced the initiation of quadripartite talks that led to the signing of the New York agreement that led to the independence of Namibia. This battle decided the fate of Angola, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
On October 15, 1993, the Nobel Prize Committee announced the joint award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Nelson Mandela and Frederik De Klerk for having reached an agreement on the conduct of the South African negotiation process (one man one vote) that it would lead to the end of apartheid and mark the beginning of a democratic administration.
In its twenty-eighth period of sessions, the President of the General Assembly being the Ecuadorian Ambassador Leopoldo Benites Vinueza. In the 2195th Plenary Session, as President, he highlighted the work of the Third Committee (resolution 3068) in the preparation and adoption of the Convention. The Convention had 91 votes in favor, four against (Portugal, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States) and 26 abstentions.
Organization for African Unity. Regional in nature that grouped the countries of the African continent. It was founded on May 25, 1963 (after the dissolution of the Union of African States) and replaced on July 9, 2002 by the African Union. Main promoter of boycott and diplomatic and political protests against South Africa due to the application of apartheid.
The United Nations Observer Mission in South Africa was established by the Security Council on August 17, 1992.
Elected by Parliament as the new president, and as vice-presidents Frederik de Klerk (PN) and Thabo Mbeki (CNA) were appointed. In his possession he said "May this beautiful land never, never and never again experience oppression by one another or suffer the indignity of being the plague of the world."
Gaddafi refused to hand over two Libyan agents suspected of the attack on a Pan Am American plane when it flew over Lockerbie (Scotland) in 1988, in which 270 people died, of which 189 were Americans.
Article 41 Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador promulgated in 2008.
In 1998 Prime Minister Jean Chretien awarded Nelson Mandela the first "Order of Canada" awarded to a foreign leader. Three years later he became an Honorary Citizen of Canada.
Happened between March 20 and May 1, 2003, carried out by a coalition of countries led by the United States. Boosted by George W. Bush, the reasons for the invasion were "to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, which were never found, many evidenced as excuses to carry out the invasion for economic and political interests. They were actively opposed: France, Belgium, Germany, Russia and China, while they supported it: Great Britain, Spain, Poland and Portugal.
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