Annual Lecture 2014 – Michelle Bachelet

Her Excellency, President Michelle Bachelet of Chile, presented the 12th Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture on 9 August 2014.

This event marked the 52nd anniversary of Mr Mandela’s capture on 5 August 1962, a milestone in his journey towards the achievement of democratic freedom in South Africa.

The lecture was held at the historic City Hall in Cape Town, a significant and poignant venue, as it was from this location that Mr Mandela gave his inaugural address to the people of South Africa after being released from prison in 1990.

The theme of the 2014 lecture was “Building social cohesion through active citizenship”, a topic distilled into the sub-themes of: education for participation; democratic co-operation through the notion of community; and identity and alienation with a specific focus on youth.

Bachelet is the second female president to have presented the Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture following former Irish President Mary Robinson, who took to the podium in 2012.