Nelson Mandela served as the President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999.He was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election.Mandela joined the African National Congress in 1944 and was engaged in resistance against the ruling National Party's apartheid policies after 1948.He went on trial for treason in 1956-1961 and was acquitted in 1961.In 1962 he was arrested and convicted of sabotage and other charges,and sentenced to life in prison.Mandela served 27 years in prison.During his years in prison,Nelson Mandela's reputation grew steadily.After his release from prison in 1990,he plunged himself wholeheartedly into his life's work,striving to attain the goals he and others had set out almost four decades earlier.Mandela led his party in the negotiations that led to multi-racial democracy in 1994.As president,he frequently gave priority to reconciliation,while introducing policies aimed at combating poverty and inequality in South Africa.He is a universal symbol of social justice and an exemplary figure connoting non-racialism and democracy.(178 words)