A group of 10 Palestinian students visited the Nelson Mandela Foundation’s offices on Friday to learn about Nelson Mandela and his fight for democracy in South Africa.
July 5, 2010 – A group of 10 Palestinian students visited the Nelson Mandela Foundation’s offices on Friday to learn about Nelson Mandela and his fight for democracy in South Africa.
The group of grade eight students are in South Africa to learn about the country, culture and history. 10 of the top 250 human rights students in Palestine, they are in South Africa with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to improve their human rights knowledge.
The students – many of whom had never left the Gaza Strip before – will visit a host of historic and iconic places in South Africa including Robben Island, Mr Mandela’s former home in Vilakazi Street, Soweto and the Apartheid Museum.
Imad Okal, UNRWA trip facilitator, said: “We did 12 lessons on Nelson Mandela in our human rights curriculum and we are here to learn how the experience of South Africa can be transferred from South Africa to Palestine.”
While at the Foundation’s offices, the students watched a documentary on Mr Mandela’s life and his role in the anti-apartheid movement. They then took a tour of the archives and viewed letters that Mr Mandela wrote while on Robben Island, as well as calendars he kept and photographs taken during his 27 years in prison.
The Foundation’s Programme Officer Razia Saleh explained to the group how the work of the Foundation contributes to building a just society through the Centre for Memory and Dialogue.
Taruq Aboazoom, a grade eight student, said: “South Africa is important because we want to learn about South Africa’s civilisation and their culture and customs and their skills and experiences for human rights. We also want to know the story of black and white and the life of Nelson Mandela.”