Cyril Ramaphosa: Happy birthday, Tata

Long before I met Nelson Mandela, I felt I knew him. From his speeches, writings and, yes, his legend, I had long known and identified Mandela as one of the towering leaders of South Africa's struggle against apartheid and the foremost exponent of the aspirations of its oppressed majority people.

This, I have found, is not uncommon. Millions of people in South Africa and across the world have long identified closely and personally with the vision of humanity for which Madiba [Mandela's clan name] has fought, articulated and represented.

For a person who spent almost three decades in prison, it is not surprising that Madiba is preceded by his reputation.

It is built on his famous statement from the dock in the Rivonia trial; his courage and unrelenting commitment to the struggle; and articles he wrote and speeches he made in the 1950s and early 1960s.

It was built on the stories told about him in the townships and villages of South Africa. Most of them were true. Others, I am sure, had been embellished.

It was fuelled by the underground pamphlets, "bush telegraph" and publications that circulated among activists, workers and intellectuals.

And, as we have learned since his release from prison, it was a reputation well-earned.

The Mandela we came to know, admire and love even before we had seen him was a person whose entire being was dedicated to the plight of humanity.

This was most directly evident in his struggle for the liberation of South Africa's black population: the African people, coloureds and Indians.

He spoke about the oppressed; he spoke for the oppressed, poor and downtrodden of South Africa. But he was never parochial. As discrimination, oppression and exploitation defy national boundaries, so did his message echo across the globe.

In the years we have come to know Mandela, his unbending dedication to the plight of the poorest and most vulnerable has impressed and inspired.

He is fond of saying poverty is the greatest assault on human dignity. It is a revolutionary position, for it recognises that human dignity cannot be achieved simply by its inclusion in a Bill of Rights. It cannot be achieved merely through the promulgation of laws or by changing the relationship of the state to its people, important though these are. It has to be achieved through the eradication of all that undermines human dignity.

It requires a transformation of society; a fundamental change in economic and social power relations; and earnest attention to the basic material needs of all people. In short, it requires development.

On his 85th birthday, it is not unreasonable to ask why it is that so many people identify so closely and passionately with Nelson Mandela.

This is in great part due to the story of his life, a remarkable journey of hardship, struggle and liberation that mirrors the journey of an entire people. It is a real-life parable of the triumph of good over evil, of humility over arrogance, of non-racialism over exclusion.

It is at once a celebration of human goodness and a powerful reason for hope. But there is more.

Perhaps what appeals so much about Nelson Mandela is that he is able to express in words and actions so precisely what much of humanity feels and thinks. He is able to give voice to the sentiments that we all feel, but have neither the means nor the language to say ourselves.

If ever there was a suitable tribute for Nelson Mandela, it is to hear, loudly and unhindered, the myriad voices of the people his work has helped to empower.

It is to see how development has given rise to democracy, vibrant in its activity and brilliant in its diversity.

Happy birthday, Tata.

* Cyril Ramaphosa, former secretary-general of the ANC, chief negotiator and chairman of the Constitutional Assembly, is chairman of Millennium Consolidated Investments.