The influential leader of the independence movement in South Africa was Nelson Mandela. He became a prominent figure in the African National Congress (ANC) and advocated for the end of apartheid, a system of institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination. Mandela spent 27 years in prison for his activism, becoming a symbol of resistance against oppression. After his release in 1990, he negotiated with the government to dismantle apartheid and led the country through its first multiracial elections in 1994, where he became South Africa’s first Black president. Mandela's leadership was pivotal in promoting reconciliation and healing in a deeply divided nation.