18th July: Day of Nelson Mandela

In November 2009, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 18 July through resolution 64/13 as the International Day of Nelson Mandela, the date of his birth. This is in recognition of their exceptional contribution to the creation of a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa; to the struggle for democracy at the international level and to the promotion of a culture of peace.

What are the Mandela Rules?

The Mandela Rules, or the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment od Prisoners, were adopted by the United Nations in 1955 and last reforme don 17 December 2015.

The revised versión approved unanimously at the 70th sesión of the UN General Assembly establishes new standards for the treatment of the population deprived of their liberty, building on recent developments in prison science and international best practices. If fully implemented, they could contribute to changing what has hitherto been the prison system and its policy of subjection and pubnishment into an opportunity for personal development that would in turn bring benefits to society as a whole.

The Mandela Rules stipulate that the purpose of the penalty is the protection of society against crime and reduction of recidivism, which can only be achieved with an adequate reintegration of the person into society after his release.

They add a number of fundamental principles incluiding respect for human dignity and the non-derogable prohibition of torture and any cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

Nelson Mandela for himself

No wonder the publishing, and film industry has dedicated hundreds of books and films to Nelson Mandela. But there are also cases where the words or the eye of the south African leader himself can be seen directly and without mediation.

A good example is the book Letters from Prison, published in its Spanish translation in 2018 and which complies the letters that Mandela sent from prison to his friends and family during the 27 years he was behind correspondence and it took 10 years to unify it into a single book, as the letters were scattered in various collections of museums in different parts of the world.

Another book is Nelson Mandela for himself, from 2014, where you can read more than 2,000 quotes from spreeches, interviews and conferences of the South African leader, a compilation that was made with the collaboration of the Nelson Mandela Foundation.

It is easy to break down and destroy. The heroes are those who make peace and build.

 – Nelson Mandela