Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, the South African🇿🇦 anti-apartheid revolutionary, political leader, and philanthropist who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999 - is nowadays omnipresent in Pretoria. He was the country's first black head of state and the first elected in a fully representative democratic election. His government focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid by tackling institutionalised racism and fostering racial reconciliation. Ideologically an African nationalist and socialist, he served as the president of the African National Congress (ANC) party from 1991 to 1997. But even Mandela was a controversial figure for much of his life. Although critics on the right denounced him as a communist terrorist and those on the far-left deemed him too eager to negotiate and reconcile with apartheid's supporters, he gained international acclaim for his activism. Widely regarded as an icon of democracy and social justice, he received more than 250 honours—including the Nobel Peace Prize—and became the subject of a cult of personality. He is held in deep respect within South Africa🇿🇦, where he is often referred to by his Xhosa clan name, Madiba, and described as the "Father of the Nation". His famous statue here is in front of the Union Buildings, which were meant to house Public Services after the Union of South Africa achieved Independence from being a British Colony, but nowadays they're the official seat of the South African Government and also house the offices of the President of South Africa. -- #SouthAfrica #Apartheid #UnionBuildings #Mandela #NelsonMandela #Madiba #Pretoria #ANC #Government #SeatOfGovernment #MandelaStatue #Statue #LargerThanLife #BronzeStatue #DayOfReconciliation #Embrace #EmbraceAll #EmbraceTheNation (at Nelson Mandela Statue, Union Buildings) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8l-LL8jV6n/?igshid=1gqus3bij82h9
