Blog by ACTSA’s Vice-Chair on the 30th anniversary release of Nelson Mandela from prison
11/02/2020
Our Vice-Chair, David Kenvyn, has written a blog reflecting on the 30th anniversary release of Nelson Mandela from prison.
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30 years ago, on 11th February 1990, Nelson Mandela was released from prison. For those of us who had been campaigning for his release for years, for decades, it was a momentous occasion. We did not know what he looked like. We did not know what he sounded like. The only thing that we knew was that he was not being released to go into a quiet retirement. He was released to lead his people to freedom. We knew that was going to be a long protracted and very difficult process.
We gathered in Trafalgar Square outside the apartheid Embassy in London, in Nelson Mandela Place in Glasgow and in other appropriate locations throughout the country. We were expecting him to be released at about 2.00pm but he was late. He did not walk out of prison until 4.00pm. We filled the time by singing, chanting slogans and dancing. It was simply a glorious, joyous afternoon. The television screens in Trafalgar Square did not work, so those of us who were there did not see that iconic moment when he walked from the prison, hand-in-hand with Winnie Mandela. Of course, we are now all so familiar with that image that we think we saw it on the day, which we did when we got home and watched on our TV screens.
Margaret Thatcher had called a press conference because she expected Nelson Mandela to abandon the campaign for sanctions. He didn’t. She cancelled the press conference. The next month, Nelson Mandela came to the UK. He did not meet Margaret Thatcher. He met the people of Britain at a celebratory concert at Wembley Stadium. When he walked on stage, we cheered and cheered and cheered. When we heard his voice for the first time, we cheered again. Even 30 years later, remembering that moment brings tears to the eyes.
Getting from his release to the election, 10,000 or more people were murdered, including Chris Hani, the Secretary-General of the South African Communist Party. It was four years between Mandela’s release and his inauguration as President on 10th May 1994. The process began when he walked from prison on 11th February 1990. From that moment we knew that South Africa would be free.
David Kenvyn is ACTSA’s Vice-Chair.