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Nelson Mandela Peace Summit

On September 24, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and Head of the Delegation of the Holy See to the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly, gave an intervention during the Nelson Mandela Peace Summit, which was an extraordinary high-level meeting of the General Assembly. It was held to mark the centenary of Mandela’s birth on July 18, 1918.
 
In his statement, Archbishop Gallagher said that Mandela’s legacy has become synonymous with the promotion of peace, nonviolence, reconciliation, non-discrimination, and human rights. Archbishop Gallagher focused on two lessons from Mandela’s life. The first is that victory never means humiliating a defeated foe, which Mandela showed by his grace and generosity in victory after 27 years of imprisonment and offering a hand of friendship to those who had made him suffer. The second is that peace is consolidated when nations can discuss matters as equals, something that is featured in the way Mandela practiced the concept of Ubuntu, which teaches that we can only flourish when we help people around us flourish. He quoted Mandela’s words that to make peace with your enemy you must work with him and make him your partner.
 

His statement can be found here.