Nelson Mandela was a human.
Nelson Mandela . Ideologically an African nationalist and socialist , he served as President of the African National Congress ( ANC ) party from 1991 to 1997 . He studied law at the University of Fort Hare and the University of the Witwatersrand before working as a lawyer in Johannesburg . Although initially committed to non-violent protest , in association with the SACP he co-founded the militant Umkhonto we Sizwe in 1961 and led a sabotage campaign against the government . Mandela served 27 years in prison , initially on Robben Island , and later in Pollsmoor Prison and Victor Verster Prison . Internationally , he acted as mediator in the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial and served as Secretary-General of the Non-Aligned Movement from 1998 to 1999 .