The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1993 ends with a postscript on "National Unity and Reconciliation". The first two paragraphs of this postscript contain a striking summary of our past, and of a vision for the future, with which this University fully identifies itself:

"This constitution provides a historic bridge between the past of a deeply divided society characterised by strife, conflict, untold suffering and injustice, and a future founded on the recognition of human rights, democracy and peaceful co-existence and development opportunities for all South Africans, irrespective of colour, race, class, belief or sex.

The pursuit of national unity, the well-being of all South African citizens and peace requires reconciliation between the people of South Africa and the reconstruction of society."

As part of the many contributions of this University - one of the three oldest universities in this country - to this historic turning point in our development, we honour tonight the exceptional role played by a man from a small town in Transkei in the Eastern Cape in the attainment of this turning point.

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on 18 July 1918 in Qunu near Umtata. His father, Henry Mgadla Mandela, was an important advisor to Paramount Chief David Dalinyebo. After his father's death Dalinyebo took responsibility for the young Mandela's education. Coming from a leading family it was expected of him to become a traditional leader.

The life story of the young man from Qunu, however, took a different route. Today he is not known as a traditional leader, but as the democratically elected President of the Republic of South Africa.

His is a life story which has not been without much trauma and pain. I surely need not describe the details thereof here. It is the story of a man with vision, who has become one of the most remarkable people of our century. The man from Qunu is not only the head of state of South Africa. He is also a person who is respected world-wide for his moral leadership. For millions of people around the world he is the living symbol of liberation and reconciliation.

This status was achieved inter alia through his untiring dedication to study as a means to self-empowerment, to use a modern and significant term. He left the Eastern Cape for Johannesburg where he continued his university studies by means of correspondence. In 1942 he received his B.A. degree from the University of South Africa.

In the same year and under very difficult financial and other circumstances, he embarked on a clerkship at a firm of attorneys. In spite of an early involvement in politics he remained a student. He even enrolled for an LL.B degree at the University of the Witwatersrand.

In later years, during his imprisonment on Robben Island and elsewhere, he became known for his intellectual and physical discipline. Here too he did not abandon his ideal of development through education. Once again he registered for an LL.B, this time at the University of South Africa, and received his degree in absentia in 1989.

His dedication to education, particularly self-study, even under extremely difficult circumstances, makes him a role model for all teachers and students. It was this conviction which, ten years before his imprisonment, made him say: "……….make every home, every shack or rickety structure a centre of learning".

As a political leader an statesman his greatness is based on the fact that he is able to look back at his momentous life without bitterness and has become a champion of reconciliation. In this too he is a worthy role model.

His plea during the will-known Rivonia trial already contained the most important element of his political vision for South Africa:

"I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all people live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But, if need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

He never abandoned this vision, even during 27 years of imprisonment. Few politicians have the courage in a divided society to advocate so consistently the desirability and the feasibility of reconciliation and tolerance. It was this vision which persuaded Mr Mandela to take part in the many exploratory discussions with representatives of the then government in the nineteen eighties. Politically it was surely not without risk for him. However, his conviction that a democratic and peaceful South Africa with equal opportunities for all its people could only be brought about through negotiation, was to him more important than the risks.

February 1990 placed South Africa on a new path. This path, as we all know, is not an easy one. But it is a path which at least offers a chance of success to all South Africans and their children and grandchildren. The world has opened up for South Africa and we can hold our heads high with pride again wherever we go. And it is important for all academics that it has once more become possible for academic and scientific institutions to gain world wide entry and thus to make their full contribution to our country's development.

The consistency with which Nelson Mandela has articulated his vision since his release in February 1990 has required not only moral courage but also powers of persuasion. There is little doubt that this is one of the important reasons why the transition of the past six years has taken its course without major political violence. Nelson Mandela must get considerable credit for the fact that so many divergent groups and parties took part in the negotiation process. This process would not have had any credibility without the highest degree of consultation and inclusivity.

Mandela's handling of the process of change and negotiation has undoubtedly also been influenced by the spirit of the legal profession for which he was trained. From the day when he and Oliver Tambo set up the first black firm of attorneys in the country in 1952, it was important to him to act professionally in his chosen career and to remain true to the ideals of the law. That was definitely not easy in the turbulent political circumstances of the fifties.

A key aspect of president Mandela's role as reconciler is his explicit appreciation for the contributions of the various cultures, languages and religions in our country with its great diversity. He sets an admirable example of respect and tolerance for that which is important to the different cultural and language groups in South Africa. Or, as Breyten Breytenbach put it earlier this month in a remarkable essay on Afrikaans: We must strive for "a South African nation which grows and flourishes out of a balance between the tensions among her constituent elements" (translated)

Afrikaans speaking South Africans greatly appreciate his openness about and understanding for the Afrikaans language. The fact that he has publicly taken a stand on this matter and the way in which he has done so has not been lost on the Afrikaans community. The recognition that he gives to Afrikaans in word and deed contributes immensely to the promotion of reconciliation and peace in the country. Mathews Phosa, the premier of Mpumalanga, recently published a collection of poems in Afrikaans with the title "Deur die oog van 'n naald" ("Through the eye of a needle"). In an introductory chapter on Afrikaans as a national language, originally delivered before the "Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns" (Academy for Arts and Sciences), Phosa quotes a well known poem by Totius, an Afrikaans poet from an earlier generation. The poem deals with a small tree, broken by passing wheels, which recovers from its wounds through the balm of its own gum. This Phosa uses to describe the future of Afrikaans and of our country.

All this forms part of his humanity and sincere interest in his fellow human beings in general. In this regard I refer particularly to his intense involvement with the lot of South African children, which has resulted in the founding of the Mandela Children's' Fund. His commitment has not been limited to words. Generous personal financial support by the person after whom the fund is named has helped it grow from strength to strength. The man from Qunu has not forgotten the poverty of many in the area from where he comes.

He is, furthermore, someone who takes great pleasure in watching a beautiful sunset to the strains of Handel or Tchaikowski. And his love for his country is nowhere more clear than when he says: "And whenever I travel, I immediately begin to miss the familiar - the mine dumps, the colour and smell that is uniquely South African, and above all, the people. I do not like to be away for any length of time. For me there is no place like home."

It is a great privilege for the University of Stellenbosch to add the degree of D Phil honoris causa of this University to the many honorary doctorates which Nelson Mandela has already received. In this way we give recognition to someone who has become a living symbol of empowerment through learning, of peace and reconciliation through negotiation, and of respect for those values which make a just and humane society possible.

We also trust that this honorary degree will have a slightly greater meaning for him than the many others, particularly from foreign institutions. As a South African institution we share the ideal expressed in the preamble to our proposed final Constitution, viz that South Africa should belong to all who live in it, united in their diversity. As a South African university with deep roots in the Afrikaans speaking community we give recognition to a person who expressed his awareness of Afrikaans speakers' burden of concern about the future of their language. He did so on 5 September this year at the publication of the collection of poems by Mathews Phosa which I have already mentioned. He continued by saying (translated): "The publication of this book has … a significance which goes far beyond the future of Afrikaans…It carries a significant message of reconciliation and nation building. Although most of us identify strongly with one of the many South African languages, we can also share our languages: in order to reach out to each other; to share our deepest feelings and highest aspirations with one another; to show respect and understanding among us".

Mr Chancellor, I request you to confer the degree of Doctor of Philosophy honoris causa on Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.