I could not imagine that the future I was walking toward could compare in any way to the past that I was leaving behind.

Only free men can negotiate; prisoners cannot enter into contracts. Your freedom and mine cannot be separated.

Nonviolence is a good policy when the conditions permit.

You will achieve more in this world through acts of mercy than you will through acts of retribution.

No single person can liberate a country. You can only liberate a country if you act as a collective.

I came to accept that I have no right whatsoever to judge others in terms of my own customs, however much I may be proud of such customs.

Video screenshot Facts and figures from Nelson Mandela's life, set to the trailer from 'Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom.' "Man's goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished."

I dream of an Africa which is in peace with itself.

It is most unusual to return to a place that has changed in ways you yourself have altered.