Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, has highlighted that the COVID-19 pandemic has rolled back years of progress in the global fight against poverty. 

Guterres made the observation on Sunday as the world marks Nelson Mandela International Day.

“As always in times of crises, it is the marginalised and discriminated against who suffer the most, often while being blamed for problems they did not cause,” said Guterres.  

He added that the pandemic has shown the “vital importance of human solidarity and unity”, values championed and exemplified by Mandela in his lifelong fight for justice.  

Noting that no one is safe until all are safe, Guterres said everyone can play their part. 

“Each year, on this day, Nelson’s Mandela’s birthday, we pay tribute to this extraordinary man who embodied the highest aspirations of the United Nations and the human family,” said Guterres in his message commemorating the July 18 celebration of South Africa’s first black head of state.

The UN chief said Mandela’s calls for solidarity and an end to racism are particularly relevant today, as social cohesion around the world is under threat of division.  

“With hate speech on the rise and misinformation blurring the truth, questioning science and undermining democratic institutions, societies are becoming more polarized,” Guterres noted.  

He has urged the world to honour Mandela’s call to action and be empowered by his legacy.

“Let us be inspired by Madiba’s message that each of us can make a difference in promoting peace, human rights, harmony with nature and dignity for all,” he said. 

In 2015, the UN General Assembly extended the scope of Nelson Mandela Day to promote humane conditions of imprisonment, raise awareness about the need to ensure prisoners remain part of society, and to value the work of prison staff as a social service of particular importance. 

Through its resolution A/RES/70/175, the Assembly not only adopted the revised UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, but also approved that they should be known as the Nelson ‘Mandela Rules’ to honour the legacy of the late President of South Africa, who spent 27 years in prison in the course of his struggle. 

The anti-apartheid revolutionary, statesman and philanthropist who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999 died on December 5, 2013 at age 95.

Guterres said the the observation of Nelson Mandela Day is an opportunity for the world to reflect on the life and legacy of a “legendary global advocate for dignity, equality, justice and human rights”.