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#### South Africa celebrates Mandela's 95th birthday Thursday

JOHANNESBURG - South Africans prepared for celebrations and charity work to commemorate the birthday of former president Nelson Mandela, who turns 95 on Thursday in a hospital where he has been for weeks.

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### This story is part of Nelson Mandela

Mandela turns 95 amid word that his health is improving
Interactive: Former S. African president Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela through the years

# South Africa celebrates Mandela's 95th birthday Thursday

The Dalai Lama, Bill Clinton and Richard Branson are among a host of celebrities voicing their appreciation for former South African president Nelson Mandela, urging people to "change the world" on his 95th birthday, which falls on Thursday.

Zaheer Cassim and Catherine Featherston , Special for USA TODAY 5:27 p.m. EDT July 17, 2013

## Father of the nation still in hospital; daughter says he is improving.

Ayanda Mkhize, 7, writes a get-well message on a painting of Nelson Mandela made by another class at the St. Mary's Diocesan School for Girls on July 17.(Photo: Ben Curtis, AP)

### Story Highlights

- Country asks people to do charity work on his birthday
- Many lament family controversy over Mandela children
- Apartheid gone, but many problems remain for young

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JOHANNESBURG - South Africans prepared for celebrations and charity work as a way to commemorate the birthday of former president Nelson Mandela, who turns 95 on Thursday in a hospital where he has been for weeks for a lung infection.

"It is obviously more significant now because of his medical condition," said Noor Nieftagodien, an associate professor from the University of Witwatersrand. "Previously, his birthday embodied our democracy, but it's profoundly more important now."

The United Nations has declared Thursday to be Nelson Mandela International Day and urged people to use the occasion to honor his work to reconcile whites and blacks in South Africa. Mandela has been in a Pretoria hospital since June 8 and remains in a "critical but stable condition," according to the government.

A Johannesburg foundation asked well-wishers to dedicate 67 minutes Thursday to charity in honor of the 67 years Mandela spent fighting to end racial segregation in South Africa.

"I'm supporting the SPCA (an animal charity) for my 67 minutes," said Chantal du Toit, 42, a high school teacher.

President Jacob Zuma will mark the birthday by overseeing the donation of houses to poor white families in the Pretoria area. People visited the hospital Wednesday to pray for Mandela and leave get well cards.

MORE: 10 ways to honor Mandela

But the day is not without controversy. Du Toit and others have expressed disappointment with the way his family and politicians have dealt with Mandela's illness, suggesting he was being taken advantage of by those who are using his legacy for their own aims.

"They need to just let him go; I think they are just keeping him alive," du Toit said. "By the time they decide to switch off the machine, the country will be over his death."

Earlier this month, family members of Mandela including his wife went to court to seek the return of the remains of the bodies of three of Mandela's children. The remains had been moved from Mandela's home village of Qunu by his eldest grandson to Mvezo 14 miles away.

The family alleged he did so to ensure that Mandela would be buried in Mvezo, the grandson's home.

Yet on Wednesday, Mandela's daughter Zindzi told Britain's Sky News that Mandela is doing well and will soon go home.

"He gave us a huge smile and raised his hands ... He responded with his eyes and his hands," she said of a recent visit.

Mandela, known as Madiba by many here, is a towering figure in South African history. He successfully led South Africa to democracy and became its first black president after a government controlled by the descendants of white settlers was pressured to end a system of racial segregation known as apartheid.

"I am, who I am, because of him," said Sipho Tsotetsi, 17. "He gave me freedom."

Tsotetsi is known as a "born free" in South Africa, meaning he was born after apartheid ended in 1994. But being free does not mean being prosperous.

Tsotetsi lives in Vosloorus, a small mining town 19 miles outside of Johannesburg. He and others say the great struggle of their generation is fulfilling the promise of democracy of economic opportunity that has yet to be realized. Unemployment is at 25%, or 4.6 million people, according to Statistics South Africa. Almost half of those ages 15 to 24 are jobless.

Former South African president Nelson Mandela leaves the Intercontinental Hotel on June 26, 2008, in London. File photo by Shaun Curry, AFP/Getty Images
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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton meets with Mandela on Aug. 6, 2012, at his home in Qunu. Jacquelyn Martin, AFP/Getty Images
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A statue of former South African president Nelson Mandela stands at the Drakenstein Correctional Center on Feb. 26, 2012, outside Cape Town. Mandela spent 27 years in prison before his release in 1990. Schalk van Zuydam, AP
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First lady Michelle Obama meets with Mandela on June 21, 2011, at his home in Johannesburg. Debbie Yazbek, AFP/Getty Images
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Workers prepare to hang an image of Mandela as they prepare for the World Cup soccer tournament on May 30, 2010, in downtown Johannesburg. File photo by Denis Farrell, AP
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The Elders, an international group of global leaders who work together to promote peace and human rights, meet with founder Nelson Mandela on May 29, 2010, in Johannesburg. File photo by Jeff Moore
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Archbishop Desmond Tutu, left, speaks with former Mandela on March 12, 2008, at the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg. File photo by Themba Hadebe, AP
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Mandela and former U.N. secretary-general Kofi Annan arrive at the 5th Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture on July 22, 2007, at the Linder Auditorium in Johannesburg. AP file photo
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Mandela meets with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at No. 10 Downing St. on Feb. 3, 2005, in London. File photo by Stephen Hird
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Mandela speaks during a visit to his old prison cell on Nov. 28, 2003, on Robben Island near Cape Town. Mandela, arrested and sentenced to life in prison in 1962, spent 27 years at the prison before his release in 1990. File photo by Anna Zieminski, AFP/Getty Images
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Mandela reacts to the vote of thanks from members of the African National Congress after his speech to delegates at a convention on Dec. 17, 2002, in Stellenbosch, South Africa. File photo by Obed Zilwa, AP
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Mandela listens as President Bush speaks in the Rose Garden on Nov. 11, 2001. Mandela visited the White House to offer his condolences after the fatal American Airlines Flight 587 crash and to express his support for U.S. actions in Afghanistan. File photo by Tim Dillon, USA TODAY
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Mandela greets supporters at a May 25, 1999, election rally in Sebokeng township. File photo by Themba Hadebe, AP
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Cuban leader Fidel Castro, left, shares a laugh with Mandela at the World Trade Organization meeting on May 19, 1998, in Geneva. File photo by Patrick Aviolat, AP
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Mandela and Libyan President Moammar Gadhafi salute the crowd on Oct. 29, 1997, in Zuwarah, Libya. File photo by Enric Marti, AP
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Barney, a purple dinosaur mascot known by children around the world, is greeted by Mandela in Johannesburg on March 24, 1997. AP file photo
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Mandela shows the way to Princess Diana during a meeting to discuss the AIDS threat on March 17, 1997, in Cape Town. File photo by Sasa Kralj, AP
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Michael Jackson hugs Mandela at the conclusion of a brief meeting on July 20, 1996. File photo by Adil Bradlow, AP
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Mandela stands with Britain's Queen Elizabeth II on July 9, 1996, at Buckingham Palace. AP file photo
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Nelson Mandela welcomes Pope John Paul II as the pontiff arrives for his official visit on Sept. 16, 1995, at the airport in Johannesburg. The pope's visit came seven years after he angered apartheid leaders by refusing to kiss the ground when the papal plane was forced to land because of bad weather. AP file photo
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Mandela gets a hug from singer Whitney Houston on Nov. 10, 1994, at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, South Africa. File photo by John Parkin, AP
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President Clinton listens as Mandela speaks on Oct. 4, 1994, during an arrival ceremony at the White House. File photo by Porter Binks, USA TODAY
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Outgoing South African President F.W. de Klerk shakes hands with President-elect Nelson Mandela on May 6, 1994, at the presidential residence in Cape Town. File photo by John Parkin, AP
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Coretta Scott King and African National Congress President Mandela celebrate after Mandela's party won South Africa's first multiracial election on May 2, 1994. File photo by Dixie D. Vereen, USA TODAY
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Mandela delivers his victory speech to supporters on May 2, 1994, at a hotel in Johannesburg. File photo by David Brauchli, AP
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Mandela and de Klerk pose with their Nobel Peace Prize medals and diplomas on Dec. 10, 1993, in Oslo. File photo by Jon Eeg, AP
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Mandela smiles after the results of a whites-only referendum on apartheid were announced on March 18, 1992, in Pretoria. Mandela said apartheid was "very much alive" in South Africa, despite white voters' stunning endorsement of plans to share power with the black majority. File photo by Graeme Williams, AP
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United Nations delegates applaud as Mandela prepares to deliver an address to the Special Committee Against Apartheid on June 22, 1990, at the United Nations headquarters in New York. File photo by Ron Frehm, AP
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Mandela walks with his wife, Winnie, after leaving the Victor Verster Prison on Feb. 11, 1990, in Cape Town. File photo by Greg English, AP
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A July 1989 poster calls for the release of Nelson Mandela. AP file photo
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A television image shows Nelson Mandela with wife Winnie on their wedding day, June 14, 1958. AFP
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African National Congress youth leaders Walter Sisulu, left, Nelson Mandela and Harrison Motlana appear during the 1952 Defiance Campaign trial at the Johannesburg Supreme Court. The campaign encouraged blacks to defy apartheid laws. AP file photo
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African National Congress leader Nelson Mandela is pictured in 1952 in the law office he opened with his colleague, Oliver Tambo, in Johannesburg. This was the first black law practice in Johannesburg. File photo by Juergen Schdeberg, AP
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Mandela leaves the Intercontinental Hotel after a photo session with celebrity photographer Terry O'Neil on June 26, 2008, in London. File photo by Chris Jackson, Getty Images
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"For the vast majority of people born since the end of apartheid, life is quite difficult because of massive youth unemployment and the very poor state of education in South Africa," said Ineke Van Kessel, a researcher at the African Studies Center at University of Leiden in the Netherlands.

Van Kessel says many of the racist structures that shaped apartheid still affect political and social structures today.

"It still makes a difference if you were born white or black," he says. "If you're born white, you are likely from a privileged background and you'll get access to better education.

"But many people now born into African families still are born into a very disadvantaged background. Their parents don't have a proper kind of education or social networks you need to get ahead."

Still, Tsotetsi says he is happy to be spending his 67 minutes cleaning his school and volunteering elsewhere.

"I will go to an orphanage or an old age home and help out with whatever they need this weekend," he said.

In the northern suburbs of Johannesburg, mechanical engineering student Rameez Mayet says he won't be able to help out because of classes but intends to make up for it this weekend.

"I haven't done anything before, but this year we are going to go to the townships and hand out food hampers and blankets," said Mayet, 19.

Mayet says his parents explained to him the role Mandela played in his life and how difficult and different the country was before democracy.

"My parents told me about all of the hardships they faced and how lucky I am not to have lived through this ugly period in South African history," he said.

Nieftagodien hopes this new generation of voters will enter the political arena but said that, like many countries in the world, young people are disengaged from the political sphere.

He also said Mandela's legacy should not be confined to one hour a year.

"We shouldn't be only doing good things for 67 minutes a year," he said. "Instead we should use this time to commit ourselves in support of the ideals that Mandela stood for, all of the time."

Featherston reported from Berlin

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##### Jul 17, 2013

Timeline: Nelson Mandela
Key dates in the former South African president's life.
1917
1925
1933
1941
1949
1957
1965
1973
1981
1989
1997
2005

- Peace activist Mandela
  .
  .
- July 18, 1918
  Born
  Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela is born in the Umtata district of Transkei, the son of a tribal chief.
  Pictured: A statue of the former South African president overlooks Bloemfontein, South Africa.
  (Themba Hadebe, AP)
- 1942
  Education
  Mandela receives his law degree from the University of the Witwatersrand, located in Johannesburg, South Africa.
- 1944
  ANC Youth League
  Helps form the ANC Youth League with Oliver Tambo and Walter Sisulu. Marries Evelyn Mase, Sisulu's cousin.
  Pictured: ANC Youth Leaders, Mandela, center, Walter Sisulu, left, and Harrison Motlana, are pictured during a 1952 trial.
  (AP file photo)
- 1948
  Apartheid
  The National Party comes to power in South Africa and implements a policy of apartheid -- an Afrikaans word meaning "apartness."
- 1952
  Defiance campaign
  Leads the Defiance Campaign, encouraging people to break racial separation laws. Convicted under Suppression of Communism Act, banned from attending gatherings and leaving Johannesburg. With Tambo, forms the first black law partnership in South Africa.
- 1956
  Charged with treason
  Mandela is one of 156 South Africans charged with treason for supporting the Freedom Charter, which called for a non-racial democracy and a socialist-based economy. All are acquitted in 1961.
- 1958
  Marriage
  Marries social worker Winnie Nomzamo Madikizela after divorcing Eveyln.
  Pictured: A TV grab shows Winnie and Nelson Mandela on their wedding day.
  (AFP photo)
- 1960
  Deadly protests
  Sixty-nine black protesters are killed by police in Sharpeville. A state of emergency is declared, and the ANC is outlawed.
  Pictured: A body lies sprawled in street in Sharpeville, South Africa, on March 21, 1960.
  (AP file photo)
- 1961
  ANC guerrilla wing formed
  Helps establish ANC guerrilla wing called Umkhonto we Sizwe, or "Spear of the Nation."
  Pictured: Mandela walks down the street in Johannesburg in 1961.
  (AP)
- 1962
  First sentence
  Charged with illegally leaving the country and incitement to strike and sentenced to five years' hard labor. Government declares Winnie Mandela a banned person and restricts her to the Soweto black township outside Johannesburg.
  Pictured: African women join in a demonstration in South Africa on Aug. 16, 1962, demanding the release of Mandela.
  (Dennis Lee Royle, AP)
- June 12, 1964
  Sentenced to life imprisonment
  Mandela is one of eight people found guilty of sabotage after police seized ANC documents in 1993 that outlined a planned guerrilla campaign. Mandela is sentenced to life imprisonment. He is taken to Robben Island Prison off Cape Town.
  Pictured: A view of the cell where Mandela was locked up in Robben Island Prison.
  (Schalk van Zuydam, AP)
- June 16, 1976
  Hundreds dead in protest
  Police fire on a protest in Soweto against an edict requiring blacks to be taught in Afrikaans. Violence spreads across South Africa, leaving hundreds dead. The Soweto Uprising galvanizes the anti-apartheid movement around the world.
  Pictured: A student carries the body of Hector Petersen, who was slain by police bullets in the riot.
  (AP file photo)
- 1985
  Offer of release
  South African President P.W. Botha offers to release Mandela if he will renounce violence. In a fiery statement read by his daughter Zindzi at a rally, Mandela says the burden is on the government to dismantle apartheid and grant full political rights to blacks.
  Pictured: P. W. Botha addresses a National Party Congress in 1987.
  (Eric Miller, AP)
- 1989
  De Klerk elected president
  F.W. de Klerk becomes president and launches a series of reforms. He releases Sisulu and four other of Mandela's co-defendants. Leading anti-apartheid groups repudiate Winnie Mandela, accusing her of complicity in the abduction and assault of a 14-year-old black activist.
  Pictured: De Klerk gathers his thoughts before giving a lecture at the Central Connecticut State University in 1997.
  (Steve Miller, AP)
- Feb. 2, 1990
  ANC legalized
  De Klerk legalizes the ANC.
  Pictured: Mandela hoists the hand of Thabo Mbeki, newly elected president of the ANC in 1997.
  (Walter Dhladhla, AFP)
- Feb. 11, 1990
  Released
  Mandela is released after spending 27 years in prison.
  Pictured: Mandela and his wife walk hand-in-hand with their fists raised upon Mandela's release from prison.
  (AP file photo)
- Aug. 6, 1990
  Violence denounced
  The ANC renounces violence in return for a government agreement to free political prisoners.
  Pictured: A child waves an African National Congress flag at a rally in February 1990.
  (Kevin Carter, AP)
- 1991
  ANC election
  Mandela is elected president of the ANC. The last major apartheid laws are repealed.
  Pictured: Mandela smiles after being unanimously elected as president of the ANC.
  (Trevor Samson, AFP/Getty Images)
- 1993
  Election, Peace Prize
  A draft constitution is adopted, opening the way to South Africa's first all-race election. Mandela and de Klerk receive the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating an end to apartheid.
  Pictured: Mandela and de Klerk pose with their Nobel Peace Prize medals.
  (Jon Eeg, AP)
- May 10, 1994
  President
  Mandela is inaugurated as South Africa's first black president.
  Pictured: Mandela dances at a celebration concert following in inauguration.
  (John Parkin, AP)
- June 24, 1995
  Rugby World Cup
  In a well-chosen gesture of forgiveness, Mandela appears wearing South African colors at the Rugby World Cup final in Johannesburg to congratulate the victorious home team, bringing the overwhelmingly white crowd of 63,000 to its feet chanting "Nelson! Nelson! Nelson!"
  Pictured: South African rugby captain Francios Pienaar, left, receives the Rugby World Cup from Mandela.
  (Ross Setford, AP)
- May 29, 1996
  Divorce
  Granted a divorce from Winnie Mandela. The couple had been separated since 1992.
  Pictured: Mandela kisses his wife during a rally in Cape Town in early 1993.
  (Benny Gool, AP)
- July 18, 1998
  Third marriage
  Weds Graca Machel, the widowed former first lady of neighboring Mozambique, on his 80th birthday.
  Pictured: Mandela, along with his new wife Graca Machel, waves as he leaves the Argentine Parliament in Buenos Aires on July 23, 1998.
  (AFP photo)
- June 16, 1999
  Retirement
  Retires after one term as president. Turns his attention to peacemaking in other parts of Africa and the world and to fighting AIDS.
  Pictured: Mandela, left, raises the hand of newly sworn-in President Thabo Mbeki, at the inauguration ceremony in Pretoria, South Africa on June 16, 1999.
  (Jean-Marc Bouju, AP)
- 2005
  Son's death
  When his son, Makgatho, dies, Mandela says publicly that the cause was AIDS -- a powerful show of openness in a country where the disease is largely kept a shameful secret.
  Pictured: Mandela greets the audience at the '46664' Concert at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town in 2003. The '46664' Concert, named after Mandela's Apartheid prison number, is part of his world advocacy for action against AIDS.
  (Anna Zieminski, AFP/Getty Images)
- July 18, 2009
  91st birthday
  His 91st birthday is declared international Mandela Day, which organizers hope will become an annual event devoted to community service.
  Pictured: Volunteers load apples for redistribution to programs serving hungry families as part of Mandela Day in New York in 2009.
  (Don Emmert, AFP/Getty Images)

Source: The Associated Press
Katharine Lackey, USA TODAY

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### This story is part of Nelson Mandela

Mandela turns 95 amid word that his health is improving
Interactive: Former S. African president Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela through the years
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