マンデラ氏死去 今こそ継承したい寛容の精神

The Yomiuri Shimbun December 12, 2013
World must learn from, carry on Mandela’s legacy of forgiveness
マンデラ氏死去　今こそ継承したい寛容の精神（12月12日付・読売社説）

About 100 heads of state and other world leaders mourned the death of Nelson Mandela at a memorial service for the former South African president in Johannesburg on Tuesday, showing how Mandela was revered all around the world.
　約１００人の国家元首や首脳級の要人が集い、その死を悼んだ。世界中で尊敬される指導者だった証しである。

Mandela, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate honored for his strenuous fight against apartheid and eventual success in ending his country’s system of racial segregation, died last Thursday. He was 95.
　南アフリカで、アパルトヘイト（人種隔離政策）を撤廃に導いて、ノーベル平和賞を受けたネルソン・マンデラ元大統領が、９５歳で死去した。

The global dignitaries at the national memorial service held for Mandela at a stadium in South Africa’s largest city included Crown Prince Naruhito and former Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. In a memorial address, U.S. President Barack Obama praised the anti-apartheid icon’s achievements, describing him as “a giant of history, who moved a nation toward justice and in the process moved billions around the world.”
　ヨハネスブルクで行われた追悼式には、皇太子さまが、福田康夫元首相とともに参列された。オバマ米大統領は演説で、マンデラ氏を「歴史上の巨人だった。国家を正義に導き、世界の何十億の人々を揺り動かした」と称賛した。

During the second half of the 20th century, Afrikaner whites, the South African minority that ruled the country, repressed the black majority under legislation based on the apartheid policy. Black members of the population did not possess the right to vote and were even restricted in where they could live.
　２０世紀後半の南アでは、支配権を握る少数派の白人が、アパルトヘイトに基づき、多数派の黒人を法的に抑圧した。黒人には参政権がなく、居住地も制限された。

A lawyer, Mandela fought racial discrimination in his country after joining the anti-apartheid activities of the African National Congress, then a political party struggling for the freedom of black South Africans. Mandela’s adherence to his cause despite 27 years in prison for treason provokes amazement.
　弁護士だったマンデラ氏は、黒人解放組織、アフリカ民族会議（ＡＮＣ）の反アパルトヘイト活動に参加して、人種差別と闘った。反逆罪で、２７年間も獄中生活を強いられたにもかかわらず、節を曲げなかったのは、驚嘆に値する。

The true worth of Mandela’s political leadership was demonstrated when and after he was asked by his nation’s white government to help end apartheid. By that time, the South African government could no longer endure the international sanctions imposed on the country.
　マンデラ氏が政治指導者としての真骨頂を発揮したのは、国際社会の制裁に耐えかねた白人政権から、アパルトヘイト撤廃への協力を求められて以降だ。

The power of forgiveness

Mandela ended the ANC’s pursuit of an armed struggle and negotiated with the white government, which resulted in an end to apartheid and a national election open to all races. This enabled the ANC to take the reins of government, with Mandela becoming South Africa’s first black president. However, he urged the black majority not to retaliate against whites.
　ＡＮＣの武力闘争路線を終わらせ、政権との交渉で、アパルトヘイト廃止と全人種参加選挙にこぎつけた。ＡＮＣが政権を掌握したのに伴い、黒人として初の大統領に選出されたが、白人に対する報復を強く戒めた。

In his inaugural address as South African president in 1994, Mandela pledged to “build the society in which all South Africans, both black and white, will be able to walk tall, without any fear in their hearts.” In fact, the position of vice president was assumed by Mandela’s predecessor, a white president.
　１９９４年の大統領就任演説で「黒人や白人ら全ての国民が、胸を張って歩ける社会を建設する」と約束し、副大統領には白人の前大統領が就いた。

Mandela’s spirit of tolerance—with which he sought to transform South Africa into a nation in which all ethnic groups could live in harmony—deeply affected people around the world.
多人種共存を目指す寛容の精神が、世界の人々に深い感銘を与えたと言える。

In 1995, South Africa hosted the rugby World Cup. Mandela cheered for his country’s national team, which comprised mostly white players—an episode that helped create a sense of unity among South Africans. The story was later made into an American film that became known to many people around the world.
　南アで開催されたラグビー・ワールドカップ（Ｗ杯）で、白人主体の代表チームを自ら応援し、国民の一体感を育んだ逸話は、映画化され、よく知られている。

Mandela’s achievements also included his successful post-apartheid economic policies, which included efforts to skillfully utilize the vitality of white industrialists instead of depriving them of management rights. He did not persist in his own view that his country’s mines should be placed under state control. All this contributed to economic growth.
　白人の企業家から経営権を奪わず、むしろその活力を生かした経済政策も実績である。持論だった鉱山国有化などには固執せず、南アの経済成長につなげた。

However, today South Africa seems to be experiencing what may be regarded as the adverse effects of the ANC’s prolonged rule, including corruption within its administration and abuse of privilege. Little progress has been made in narrowing economic disparities between the white minority and the black majority.
　だが、現在の南アでは、ＡＮＣ政権が長期化するに伴い、政権内で腐敗や特権乱用の傾向が目立っている。白人と黒人の間の経済格差の解消も進まない。

Ethnic conflicts and bloodshed attributable to religious differences continue to rage in many parts of the world. Not only South Africans but also people around the world must remind themselves of the precious lessons taught by Mandela.
　世界各地では、民族や宗教の違いに根ざす流血が続く。南アに限らず、国際社会全体で、マンデラ氏の残した教訓を改めてかみしめる必要がある。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Dec. 12, 2013)
（2013年12月12日01時27分  読売新聞）