Nelson Mandela guided South Africa from the shackles of apartheid to a multi- racial democracy as an icon of peace and reconciliation who came to embody the struggle for justice around the world.

Imprisoned for nearly three decades for his fight against white minority rule, Mandela never lost his resolve to fight for his people's emancipation. He was determined to bring down apartheid while avoiding a civil war. His prestige and charisma helped him win the support of the world.

"I hate race discrimination most intensely and in all its manifestations. I have fought it all during my life; I will fight it now, and will do so until the end of my days," Mandela said in his acceptance speech on becoming South Africa's first. black President in 1994 . . . . . . .  "The time for the healing of the wounds has come. The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come." "We have, at last, achieved political emancipation."

In 1993, Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, an honor he shared with F.W. de Klerk, the white South African leader who had freed him, from prison three-years earlier and negotiated the end of apartheid.

Mandela went on to play a prominent role on the world stage as an advocate of human dignity in the face of challenges ranging from political repression to AIDS. He formally left public life in June 2004 before his 86th birth day, telling his adoring countrymen: "Don't call me. I'll call you." But he remained one of the world's most revered public figures, combining celebrity sparkle with an unwavering message of freedom, respect and human rights.

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