But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.In July 1963, ten African National Congress (ANC) leaders were arrested in Rivonia, a suburb of Johannesburg.
Along with Mandela, who had been arrested in August 1962 and was serving a five-year sentence, they were accused of counts of sabotage, furthering communism and aiding foreign powers.
That included charges of recruiting persons to undertake guerrilla warfare against the South African state, conspiring to aid foreign military against the republic, and furthering acts of communism.
[7] Mandela worked on the speech for weeks before the trial, receiving help in editing and polishing it from author Nadine Gordimer and journalist Anthony Sampson.
"[10] Judge de Wet over-ruled the objection saying, "I think Mr. Yutar, that counsel for the defence have sufficient experience to be able to advise their clients without your assistance."
[12] The speech describes why the ANC had decided to go beyond its previous use of constitutional methods and Gandhian non-violent resistance and adopt sabotage against property (designed to minimize risks of injury and death) as a part of their activism against the South African government and its apartheid policies (while also training a military wing for possible future use).
I planned it as a result of a calm and sober assessment of the political situation that had arisen after many years of tyranny, exploitation, and oppression of my people by the whites.
"[10] Mandela also devoted significant effort to refuting the prosecution's charges that he and the ANC had acted under the domination of the Communist Party of South Africa and foreign interests.
Sampson described it as the most effective speech of his career, whereas Gordimer thought the delivery to be "hesitant, parsonical" until "only at the end did the man come through and when he had spoken that last sentence the strangest and most moving sound I have ever heard from human throats, came from the 'black' side of the court audience" .