Mandela Becomes President of South Africa, 1994

For days after the elections, I waited. I waited long, hard hours to find out the results of the previous elections, in which over twenty-two million voters stood in line for hours at some nine-thousand polls to cast their vote for South Africa’s next government, and ultimately, their next president. As tensions remained high, accusations of election fraud were strongly suggested and discussed amongst the many people of the IEC. This made me very upset, as well as frustrated, over the fact that people would suggest such a thing, meanwhile, the voting was as fair and just as could be. Eventually, after weeks of debate, the IEC gracefully certified the elections as “substantially free and fair” releasing the results on the sixth of May in that fateful year of 1994. We had done it, accomplished all that was unexpected, and defeated the strong, vigorous white supremacists and the government, who at once declared that a black man will never have the equal voice as a white man in politics, was defeated and overruled.

The official results had announced that 62.6 percent of the votes were given to the ANC, as three days following, I myself, Nelson Mandela was elected president by the National Assembly. Along side me were my two deputy presidents, former ANC chairman Thabo Mbeki and former president de Klerk, who embraced the moment during my inauguration the following day in Pretoria. Flattered, exhilarated, nervous, excited, all of these feelings overcame my body as I was swept away by the attendance of representatives from around the world. However, my overwhelming sensations were calmed by the confidence I acquired through the words of my speech, in which I stressed my determination, and the nation’s determination that will be crucial in order to establish a peaceful, nonracial society. I declared that within our nation of South Africa and outside our nation, compromising, reconciling, and engaging in a harmonious lifestyle and relationship with all is crucial in working towards a better, overall world, in which socially, economically, politically, and educationally, citizens, business owners, farmers, families, and all other people of the world will involve themselves gracefully with the new nation of South Africa. In reaffirming my determination for this peace I spoke of, I engaged in reciting the words I spoke at the Rivonia trial in which I was tried after my twenty-seven year long imprisonment, “We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation. We pledge ourselves to liberate all our people from the continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination. We succeeded to take our last steps to freedom in conditions of relative peace. We commit ourselves to the construction of a complete, just and lasting peace. We have triumphed in the effort to implant hope in the breasts of the millions of our people. We enter into a covenant that we shall build the society in which all South Africans, both black and white, will be able to walk tall, without any fear in their hearts, assured of their inalienable right to human dignity--a rainbow nation at peace with itself and the world.”

The white rule was over, and it was time for a new change. Love, peace, diversity, all of these words in which embraced the new nation I would strive to achieve, were announced repeatedly in my inaugural speech. I also made promises, in which I pledged that the government and myself would oppose all that may harm the republic, “Never, never again will this beautiful land experience the oppression of one by another.” I pledged to devote myself to the well-being of the people, as well as treating myself as equally as anyone within the republic. All of these promises, pledges and words that came out of my mouth that fateful day have remained true and will always, under my rule remain the same.

Although there may still be tension between people, our nation as a whole has become one, and most importantly, our government, in which the atmosphere has developed into a sense of brotherhood and family, as there is peace and respect for one another, despite color diversity. We are all one in South Africa, and always will be.



-Nelson Mandela, August 10th, 1994