I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. The final words in his four-and-a-half-hour-long speech at the Rivonia Trial have become the stuff of legend in the history of the struggle against apartheid:ĭuring my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. Of course the words of an accused uttered in open court were exempt from this restriction, and the words he spoke at his October–November 1962 trial and his famous speech from the dock at the Rivonia Trial on 20 April 1964 were quoted in the media.ĭespite this exemption, people still feared quoting him.
Under the apartheid regime, people who were banned or imprisoned could not be quoted, and Mandela was successively banned from December 1952 and was in custody from 5 August 1962 until 11 February 1990. In South Africa, quoting Mandela carried with it the threat of a criminal record and a possible prison sentence. This is ironic given that for much of his adult life he could not be quoted at all. Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela is one of the most quoted – and misquoted – people in the world.
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