2014 -- H 7002

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2014

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

EXPRESSING ITS DEEPEST CONDOLENCES ON THE PASSING OF NELSON MANDELA

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Williams, Fox, Mattiello, E Coderre, and Hull

     Date Introduced: January 07, 2014

     Referred To: House read and passed

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     WHEREAS, The world and humanity lost one of its greatest citizens when Nelson

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Mandela passed away. Fortunately, he left a legacy we all can cherish and pass on to our children,

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a legacy of standing up for, and sacrificing for, freedom, liberty and equality, and standing

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against hatred, racial prejudice, violence and war;

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     WHEREAS, Nelson Mandela was born on July 18, 1918 as Rolihlahla Mandela, to

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Nonqaphi and Nkosi Mphakanyiswa Gadla Mandela in Transkei, South Africa. Nelson Mandela

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was also affectionately known as Madiba, a term used for respected elders, and a fitting name for

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a man called the "Father of the South African Nation;" and

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     WHEREAS, Nelson Mandela courageously refused to accept and tolerate racial injustice

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and South Africa's immoral system of Apartheid. For his courageous stand against injustice,

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Nelson Mandela was sent to prison for life and spent 27 years in prison, spending 17 of those

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years on Robben Island and only being permitted one visitor a year, for only a 30 minute stay.

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Additionally, he was confined to a small cell, was sentenced to hard labor and was harshly

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mistreated by prison officials;

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     WHEREAS, Throughout his prison stay, Mandela remained resolute and refused offers to

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renounce his righteous struggle against the government of South Africa in exchange for his

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freedom, and became widely viewed throughout the world as a martyr and the leader against the

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Apartheid government; and

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     WHEREAS, On February 11, 1990, under growing international pressure, and national

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campaign efforts, Nelson Mandela was released from prison after more than 27 years of

 

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incarceration. Upon his release, Mandela resumed a top position in the African National Congress

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and led the party in negotiations that resulted in South Africa's first multiracial election; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1994, following the first free election in South Africa, Nelson Mandela

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was elected on May 9 and inaugurated on May 10, as President of the Democratic Republic of

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South Africa under a Government of National Unity; and

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     WHEREAS, As president, Mandela led the transition from minority rule and apartheid to

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a multicultural, multiracial democracy, and played a critical role in fostering national

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reconciliation, as he urged all South African citizens to forgive past injustices and join together to

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build a flourishing, free society where all are treated equally regardless of skin color. His decision

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to step down after one term showed his commitment to democratic principles for elected national

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leaders in new and emerging democracies around the globe; and

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     WHEREAS, For his sacrifice and tireless efforts to peacefully terminate the apartheid

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regime in South Africa, Nelson Mandela, along with Frederik de Klerk, was awarded the Nobel

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Peace Prize in 1993. Mandela had also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002 from

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President George W. Bush, and the Philadelphia Liberty Medal in 1993 from President Bill

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Clinton; now, therefore be it

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     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and

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Providence Plantations hereby expresses its deepest sympathies on the passing of Nelson

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Mandela and expresses our admiration and appreciation of a great man who sacrificed much on

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behalf of his fellow man and represented principles we all cherish such as freedom, equality, and

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ending racial injustice; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to send

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a duly certified copy of this resolution to South African President Jacob Zuma.

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