Interview Winnie Mandela

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Interview :

- Journalist:   Hi, we're gonna interview Winnie Mandela, the second wife of Nelson Mandela, to get some information on his "private" life.
I'm Lyse Doucet for the BBC News !

"-Anna:  Hi, I have a lot of questions for you, but for the moment, let's speak of Nelson and you. So, firstly, how did you meet Nelson Mandela and when exactly ?

-Yaël:  I met him in the mid 1950's, at the time he was the leader of the African National Congress. We married each others in June 1958 even thought my father wasn't thinking that it would be something great because of our age difference and his political involvements.

-Anna:  As we all know, he left you after 38 years of marriage because of the money you were taking away from him. But he must have been loving you before that so, do you know if your separation did hurt the great Nelson Mandela ?

-Yaël:  I don't really think so, he left me in 1996 because of those money problems so that mostly hurt me, but I do not know if he had any regrets after that ...

-Anna:  Ok, let's speak of something else. Many people wonder which factors make up such a powerful leader, could you tell us something about his childhood ?

-Yaël:  Effectively, I think that his childhood is actually one of the reason he became who he was. I'll tell you all I know about it. He told me that he was the first in his family to attend a school and it was while there that the young Rolihlala was given the name Nelson.
His father died when he was nine years old so he was put under the guardianship of the regent Jongintaba, but he stayed strong even after this tragedy. The proof, he had still the motivation to attend a Wesleyan School and College, he completed his junior certificate in only 2 years rather than 3.

-Anna:  Interesting... Also, do you know why was he called "Madiba" by so many people, was it an affective nickname ?

-Yaël:  Not really, people were calling him "Madiba" because it was his clan-name. One day he explained to me that if he is often addressed as Madiba, it's because it's a sign of respect.

-Anna:  Ok. I now would like to know a little bit more on the period he passed in jail, so, why was he sent to jail ? Do you think it was unfair ?

-Yaël:  In 1994, he joined the ANC but that organization has been banned by the government in 1960 so he continued to act for the ANC, but more secretly. Sadly in 1962 he was arrested for trying to cause a revolution and for plotting to overthrow the government by violence.
Even if he was doing these attacks with the ANC to reduce inequalities between black and white, he killed a lot of people doing it so I think his arrest was a bit deserved.

-Anna:  Surely, maybe 27 years of prison were too much thought.

-Yaël:  It was a lot, but he could have avoided these if he accepted to renounce to his ideas about Apartheid, be he didn't because he had to be brave, so he will be able to remove it entirely.  

-Anna:  And do you know what happened for him after his release the 11 February 1990 ? Wasn't he angry after the one who arrested him ? Has he ever thought of getting revenge ?

-Yaël:  One year after his release he became the president of the ANC, who has been legalized the 2 February 1990, at the same time as Apartheid was abolished. Three years later he was elected the first Black President of South Africa with a totally new project, aiming to reunite South Africa, so he wasn't thinking of revenge at all.

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