Homework Kauri Class
Week 7 Term 2--- 2nd June 2015
Due: Monday 8th June 2015
Focus: NELSON MANDELA BORN 18 JULY 1918
Nelson Mandela was a civil rights leader and the first black President of South
Africa. His beliefs led to his imprisonment on June 12 1962. He remained in
prison for 27 years but never gave up his fight to achieve human rights and a
better future for everyone in South Africa. Nelson Mandela was born on July
18, 1918 in Mvezo, South Africa. He was one of 13 children. His birth name
was Rolihlahla meaning "pulling the branch of a tree" or informally,
"troublemaker", however he was later given the name ‘Nelson’ by his teacher.
Nelson was a member of Thimbu royalty and his father was the village chief.
Nelson’s father died when he was 9 years old so he went to live with the local
acting chief who sent him to school. He was the first member of his family to
go to school and he did well there. He went on to attend university and it was
here that he met other like minded people who were questioning the way
South Africa was being governed. He was expelled from university in 1941
after protesting about the way the university was run. After being expelled he
moved to Johannesberg and went on to get a law degree. Mandela became
increasingly concerned with how South Africa was being run. By this time,
South Africa had adopted an apartheid system where non-white citizens were
divided or segregated from whites and did not have equal rights. The South
African government at the time was all white. They made all of the laws and
would not allow blacks to vote, attend good schools, go out after dark or live
and work in many areas. These laws and discrimination left black citizens
living in poverty. Although the white citizens were in power, they were a
minority. The population of South Africa during the time of apartheid was 71%
black, 16% white, 10% mixed, 3% Asian. In 1944, Nelson Mandela became
involved with the African National Congress (ANC) where he eventually
became a leader. The ANC wanted black South Africans to have the same
human rights as whites. At first he pushed hard for the ANC to follow
Mohandas Gandhi's non-violence approach but eventually he doubted that
this approach would work and started up an armed branch of the ANC. He
planned to bomb certain buildings, but only the buildings. He wanted to
ensure no one would be hurt. In 1960, a demonstration was held against
apartheid at Sharpeville, near Johannesburg. The police shot dead 69 black
people. The government blamed the ANC, and banned it. Mandela then
became leader of a secret army. He was hunted by the police and had to
hide. He travelled to other countries to seek help. The government saw
Mandela as a threat to their policy of apartheid and made it very hard for him
to keep leading the group. He was classified as a terrorist. In 1961 South
Africa left the Commonwealth. Millions of people in other countries did not
support apartheid so they stopped trading with South Africa. Sports teams
and entertainers also refused to go there. Still the government refused to
change. In 1962, Nelson Mandela was arrested again. He was accused of
plotting to overthrow the government. In 1964, aged 46, he was given a life
sentence and sent to a prison on Robben Island. Mandela spent 18 years on
Robben Island. He had to do hard labour and was allowed only one visitor
every 6 months. He was later moved to another prison. Mandela spent a total
of 27 years in prison. He refused to change his principles in order to be
released and stated that he would die for his beliefs. Mandela became the
most famous prisoner in the world. He did not give up. Even the prison guards
admired him. © 2012 The Weekly Plan. All rights reserved. NELSON
MANDELA BORN 18 JULY 1918 Nelson Mandela became famous for his
long fight against apartheid and became a hero to people all over the world.
Finally, in 1988, the South African government began to make changes such
as letting black students into 'white' universities. From around the world, the
calls got louder: “Free Nelson Mandela!” In 1990, South Africa's new
President FW de Klerk set Nelson Mandela free. Mandela and de Klerk
agreed: no more fighting. Mandela called on all South Africans to work
together in peace and continued his campaign to end apartheid. In 1991,
Mandela became leader of the ANC. His life long effort paid off when all races
were allowed to vote in the 1994 election. Nelson Mandela won the election
and became the first black president of South Africa. Mandela was welcomed
around the world as a great leader and was given many honours. In 1993,
Nelson Mandela and FW de Klerk shared the Nobel Peace Prize. Mandela
passed away on 6 December, 2013.
Comprehension Questions Factual:
1. What does ‘apartheid’ mean?
2. What were the ANC trying to achieve?
3. In what year did South Africa leave the Commonwealth?
4. In which year was Mandela… a) imprisoned? b) released?
5. Who set Mandela free?
Challenge: The world is full of people fighting for their beliefs. Match the
following groups with their beliefs…
PETA
Fights extreme poverty and preventable disease
Greenpeace
Fights for the conservation of wildlife
Amnesty International
Fights for women’s equality
WWF
Fights to protect and conserve the environment
ONE
Fights for the ethical treatment of animals
NOW
Fights to protect human rights.
Choose any group that fights for their beliefs and write a paragraph or two
about them. Be prepared to discuss this with the class.
Spellings: Imprisoned, Terrorist, Classified, Government, Accusation,
Demonstration, Questioning, Achievement, President, Fighter.