Mandela walks to freedom: 11 February 1990

TREVOR McDONALD: This was the moment the world paused to applaud, the day the myth yielded to the man, and Nelson Mandela walks to freedom. His steps were firm, his gait measured and deliberate, betraying only the hesitation that comes of a man thrust into the spotlight again after 27 years.

TREVOR McDONALD: The crowd outside the gate of Mr Mandela's last prison was small. The authorities had discouraged any mass gathering here with injunctions and road blocks. These were the few who were undeterred. The Mandelas were soon engulfed. A few steps more, a gesture of solidarity and a friendly wave and Nelson Mandela was about to set out again on the next instalment of his political odyssey.

TREVOR McDONALD: A small convoy was to accompany Nelson Mandela into town. Behind him, the prison gates. Ahead of him, a multiplicity of questions and anxieties about the future of this country.

Back

Top