South african author Quotes

“Lead from the back — and let others believe they are in front.”

“If the ANC does to you what the apartheid government did to you, then you must do to the ANC what you did to the apartheid government.”

“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”

“The process of illusion & disillusionment is part of life and goes on endlessly.”

“No form of violence can ever be excused in a society that wishes to call itself decent”

“Money won't create success, the freedom to make it will.”

“I was able to change my life by knowing that if somebody does something good for you, you have to respond.”

“Information is a basic human right and the fundamental foundation for the formation of democratic institutions.”

“At the southern tip of the continent, a rich reward is in the making, an invaluable gift is in the preparation, for those who suffered in the name of all humanity when they sacrificed everything - for liberty, peace, human dignity and human fulfillment.The value of our shared reward will and must be measured by the joyful peace which will triumph, because of the common humanity that bonds both black and white into one human race, will have said to each one of us that we shall all live like the children of paradise.”

“Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life . . .”

“It is my deepest conviction that the children should be seen and heard as our most treasured assets.”

“Our task is not to liberate the oppressed, but to liberate the oppressors”

“We must nurture tolerance, collective wisdom, and democracy.”

“Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice.”

“To go to prison because of your convictions and be prepared to suffer for what you believe in, is something worthwhile. It is an achievement for a man to do his duty on earth irrespective of the consequences.”

“When the history of our times is written, will we be remembered as the generation that turned our backs in a moment of global crisis or will it be recorded that we did the right thing?”

“Our children are our greatest treasure. They are our future. Those who abuse them tear at the fabric of our society and weaken our nation.”

“Once a person is determined to help themselves, there is nothing that can stop them.”

“If there is a country that has committed unspeakable atrocities in the world, it is the United States of America. They don't care for human beings.... What I am condemning is that one power, with a president [George W. Bush] who has no foresight, who cannot think properly, is now wanting to plunge the world into a holocaust.”

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

“A good head and good heart are always a formidable combination. But when you add to that a literate tongue or pen, then you have something very special.”

“Freedom is meaningless if people cannot put food in their stomachs, if they can have no shelter, if illiteracy and disease continue to dog them.”

“The majority of South Africans, black and white, recognize that apartheid has no future. It has to be ended by our own decisive mass action in order to build peace and security. The mass campaign of defiance and other actions of our organization and people can only culminate in the establishment of democracy.”

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

“Rhetoric is not important. Actions are.”