2014 -- S 2052

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LC003263

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2014

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

EXPRESSING ITS DEEPEST CONDOLENCES ON THE PASSING OF NELSON MANDELA

     Introduced By: Senators Metts, Pichardo, Paiva Weed, Ruggerio, and Goodwin

     Date Introduced: January 21, 2014

     Referred To: Recommended for Immediate Consideration

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

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

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

against hatred, racial prejudice, violence and war;

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

mistreated by prison officials;

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

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

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

Apartheid government; and

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

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

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

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

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

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

South Africa under a Government of National Unity; and

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

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

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

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

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

leaders in new and emerging democracies around the globe; and

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

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

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

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

Clinton; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

hereby expresses its deepest sympathies on the passing of Nelson Mandela and expresses our

admiration and appreciation of a great man who sacrificed much on behalf of his fellow man and

represented principles we all cherish such as freedom, equality, and ending racial injustice; and be

it further

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

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

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