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Freedom fighter, prisoner, moral compass and South Africa's symbol of the struggle against racial oppression, that was Nelson Mandela, who emerged from prison after 27 years to lead his country out of decades of apartheid. |
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He died Thursday night at age 95. |
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自由鬥士、監獄囚犯、道德指標以及南非反抗種族壓迫的象徵──這就是尼爾森．曼德拉，在坐牢二十七年獲釋放後，站出來領導他的國家擺脫實施數十年的種族隔離制度。他在週四晚間去世，享壽九十五歲。 |
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His message of reconciliation, not vengeance, inspired the world after he negotiated a peaceful end to segregation and urged forgiveness for the white government that imprisoned him. |
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他宣揚和解，而不是復仇，鼓舞了全世界，因為他經由和平協商終結種族隔離制度，並且敦促世人寬恕那個監禁他的白人政府。 |
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"As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn't leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I'd still be in prison," Mandela said after he was freed in 1990. |
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「我走出門外，邁向那道能夠讓我通往自由的大門；我知道如果自己不拋下內心的怨懟與仇恨，就不可能真正獲得自由，」曼德拉在一九九０年獲釋之後表示。 |
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Mandela, a former president, battled health issues in recent years, including a recurring lung infection that led to numerous hospitalizations. |
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曾任總統的曼德拉在近年來頗為健康問題所苦，包括反覆發作的肺部感染，導致他多次住院。 |
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Despite rare public appearances, he held a special place in the consciousness of the nation and the world. |
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儘管極少公開露面，他在南非民眾以及世人心目中仍然佔有特殊的地位。 |
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"Our nation has lost its greatest son. |
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Our people have lost a father," South African President Jacob Zuma said. |
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"What made Nelson Mandela great was precisely what made him human. |
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We saw in him what we seek in ourselves." |
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「我們的國家失去了一位最偉大的子民；我們的人民失去了一位父親，」南非總統雅各布•祖瑪說：「曼德拉的偉大之處正在於他的人性。我們在他身上看到了我們在自己內心所尋求的特質。」 |
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His U.S. counterpart, Barack Obama, echoed the same sentiment. |
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美國總統歐巴馬也呼應了同樣的感受。 |
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"We've lost one of the most influential, courageous and profoundly good human beings that any of us will share time with on this Earth," Obama said. |
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"He no longer belongs to us; he belongs to the ages." |
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「我們失去了地球上一位極具影響力、勇氣且深切良善的人物，我們都希望有他長相左右，」歐巴馬說：「他已不再屬於我們所有，而是屬於千秋萬世。」 |
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Mandela became the nation's conscience as it healed from the scars of apartheid. |
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With him gone, South Africans are left to embody his promise and idealism. |
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南非從種族隔離的創傷中逐漸復元之際，曼德拉成了這個國家的良知。現在他離開了人世，往後將必須由南非人民體現他的承諾與理想主義。 |
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