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UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon said Thursday at a UN memorial that the former South African President Nelson Mandela bestowed "the heritage of hope" to everyone.
The 68th UN General Assembly held a special meeting at the UN Headquarters in New York to give member states an opportunity to pay tribute to the life and memory of the former South African leader who passed away on Dec. 5 at the age of 95.
Ban recalled the years of struggle from racial discrimination in South Africa, the UN efforts to end apartheid, as well as Nelson's extraordinary life.
"Nelson Mandela was a human being with flaws and frailties like any of us. And yet from his humanity came humility; from humility came strength; from strength came transformation; from utter goodness came epic greatness," said Ban.
Mandela became South Africa's first post-apartheid and democratically elected president with a message of reconciliation for all.
The great man "showed that tyranny and oppression never have the last word. Justice triumphs in the end," said the UN chief, noting "whenever people stand up for human rights; wherever people speak out for freedom and reach out for reconciliation - there is Nelson Mandela."
Ban called on everyone to build the better world upon Mandela's "heritage of hope" and be inspired by his passion, compassion, and "undying conviction in the human spirit and the global good."
