Dankie, Madiba

The whole world poured out their gratitude last Friday when it lost a great iconic democracy leader - Nelson Mandela.

The man who lived full for 95 years ended apartheid in South Africa, the height of racism between the whites and the blacks. The situation then was awful. Concrete examples for the harsh racism were when the government designated places for whites and blacks. For instance, black people were not allowed to swim in the ocean or sit on privileged seats in sports stadiums. It was as if the word equality did not exist.

Mandela started out as a young lawyer and turned into a political activist. His strong will against the South African government of inequality bought him in and out of prison. In 1963 he was in a 27-year sentence. The day of his freedom bought joy to the black South Africans for their true leader had been set free.

It was no doubt that he would win the presidential election and would be the first black South African President. However, winning the position was not enough for Mandela. He wanted to fulfill his life dream of uniting the people in his country despite color and religion. He dreamt that there would no longer be a separation between the blacks and whites in whatever aspect.

This dream was one of the hardest to fulfill because of the black's hatred against the whites for the many years of discrimination. So Mandela, in his own way, won the people's heart through sports.

Stories tell us that Mandela invested his all on the 1995 Rugby World Cup. He inspired the Springboks, the official team of South Africa, in any way he could even to the extent of knowing all their names by heart. He visited them often during practices and made sure he was present in their games. He was a team player and a good sport. The players in the team were whites but he never felt indifferent towards them. His appearance during the team's games was his sign of support to the people who oppressed them.

When South Africa's score was tied against the New Zealand in the championship game, Mandela sat still in his seat and watched the final kick fly the ball past the posts giving the Springboks a score; they won.

It was as if magic happened when people, regardless of color, hugged each other in triumph. It was a victory worth celebrating. Not just of the world cup but of the unity that happened in South Africa. It was humanity's beauty at its finest. All hatred against one another was dropped because of a man who inspired a team which fought for the country's victory.

At the end of the match Mandela thanked the Springbok's captain for what he has done for the country. Until then, nothing was impossible for the South Africans. It also made people from the other parts of the world believe that nothing is impossible. We believed that no matter how messed up a nation can be, it can always unite itself.

Since that day, South Africa was not for the whites nor for the blacks but it was the South Africa for the South Africans.

Mandela's story was very inspiring that he moved the whole world. He sits in the likes of Gandhi and Mother Theresa. Now that he has passed on to the new life, the least we can do is say "Thank you, Chief" - "Dankie, Madiba".

His loss may be full of sorrow but we hang on to his legacy of equality for all. Times are changing and inch by inch the minorities are finding their voices in society. It will take time for them to really stand up like Mandela did. For now, he is a model leader and an inspiration.

He was a great Madiba, a great Chief. May he rest in peace.