I was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances.

If you are negotiating you must do so in a spirit of reconciliation, not from the point of view of issuing ultimatums.

AIDS is no longer just a disease, it is a human rights issue.

I have been influenced in my thinking by both west and east.

I always knew that someday I would once again feel the grass under my feet and walk in the sunshine as a free man.

I discovered even before I went to jail that apartheid was not run by people who were monolithic in their approach. Some of them didn't even believe in apartheid.

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