[LEGACY] Nelson Mandela - Parliament Square, London, UK - Living Statues on Waymarking.com

At the time of writing this Waymark description, 26th February 2012, Nelson Mandela is still alive and as well as can be expected for a person of his age, being 94 this year. In fact, he has just left hospital after a minor stomach operation.

This statue was unveiled on 29th August 2007 in the presence of Nelson Mandela. It was sculpted by Ian Walters. The bronze statue is nine feet tall and shows Mandela in his customary shirt, buttoned to the neck, and trousers. He has both hands raised and appears to be delivering a speech. He is facing towards the Houses of Parliament in London.

"Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born in Transkei, South Africa on July 18, 1918. His father was Chief Henry Mandela of the Tembu Tribe. Mandela himself was educated at University College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand and qualified in law in 1942. He joined the African National Congress in 1944 and was engaged in resistance against the ruling National Party's apartheid policies after 1948. He went on trial for treason in 1956-1961 and was acquitted in 1961.

After the banning of the ANC in 1960, Nelson Mandela argued for the setting up of a military wing within the ANC. In June 1961, the ANC executive considered his proposal on the use of violent tactics and agreed that those members who wished to involve themselves in Mandela's campaign would not be stopped from doing so by the ANC. This led to the formation of Umkhonto we Sizwe. Mandela was arrested in 1962 and sentenced to five years' imprisonment with hard labour. In 1963, when many fellow leaders of the ANC and the Umkhonto we Sizwe were arrested, Mandela was brought to stand trial with them for plotting to overthrow the government by violence. His statement from the dock received considerable international publicity. On June 12, 1964, eight of the accused, including Mandela, were sentenced to life imprisonment. From 1964 to 1982, he was incarcerated at Robben Island Prison, off Cape Town; thereafter, he was at Pollsmoor Prison, nearby on the mainland.

During his years in prison, Nelson Mandela's reputation grew steadily. He was widely accepted as the most significant black leader in South Africa and became a potent symbol of resistance as the anti-apartheid movement gathered strength. He consistently refused to compromise his political position to obtain his freedom.

Nelson Mandela was released on February 11, 1990. After his release, he plunged himself wholeheartedly into his life's work, striving to attain the goals he and others had set out almost four decades earlier. In 1991, at the first national conference of the ANC held inside South Africa after the organization had been banned in 1960, Mandela was elected President of the ANC while his lifelong friend and colleague, Oliver Tambo, became the organisation's National Chairperson."

Source: (visit link)

Visit Instructions:
At least one original photo, taken by the poster, of the statue. No internet photos.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   10/18/2023 Seebär visited it 10/27/2019 doodle_cz visited it 03/03/2019 pmaupin visited it 02/09/2019 Lynx Humble visited it 02/04/2018 Marvince visited it 01/02/2018 Tromel visited it 10/26/2017 CONPER visited it 05/29/2017 Al-cab visited it 07/23/2016 Benchmark Blasterz visited it 11/27/2015 vraatja visited it 10/30/2015 jezevcik visited it 09/27/2015 eilers1 visited it 09/22/2015 hillbilney visited it 08/18/2015 Kpt. Davy Jones visited it 08/01/2015 yvenka visited it 05/15/2015 ALMOR team visited it 08/14/2014 cpk-geo visited it 05/02/2014 dl3yei visited it 11/30/2013 dave-harris visited it 07/24/2013 ToRo61 visited it 02/01/2013 luzzi-reloaded visited it 08/31/2012 AngelPick visited it

View all visits/logs