We should never forget those on whose shoulders we stand and those who paid the supreme price for freedom.

We have laid the foundation for a better life. Things that were unimaginable a few years ago have become everyday reality. I belong to the generation of leaders for whom the achievement of democracy was the defining challenge.

The time comes in the life of any nation when there remain only two choices - submit or fight. That time has now come to South Africa. We shall not submit and we have no choice but to hit back by all means in our power in defence of our people, our future, and our freedom

Let it never be said by future generations that indifference, cynicism or selfishness made us fail to live up to the ideals of humanism which the Nobel Peace Prize encapsulates. Let the strivings of us all, prove Martin Luther King Jr. to have been correct, when he said that humanity can no longer be tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war.

The death sentence is a barbaric act . . . It is a reflection of the animal instinct still in human beings.

There's no such thing as part freedom.

The path of those who preach love, and not hatred, is not easy. They often have to wear a crown of thorns.