2018-06-03 Sun

A special postage stamp celebrating the 100th birth anniversary of Nelson Mandela would be released on 18th July by the United Nations Postal Administration.

Born on July 18, 1918, in Mvezo, South Africa, the great statesman went on to become the most influential South African anti-apartheid leader and first democratically elected president of the country. 18th July was established as Nelson Mandela International Day which by U.N. General Assembly in 2009 to honour the great leader’s contributions towards peace and freedom.

The scope for this special day was extended in 2015 to promote humane conditions of imprisonment so that prisoners are a part of the society and work of prison staff is considered as an important social service. Public service and activism is also promoted on this day and the Nelson Mandela Foundation will focus on “action against poverty” this year.

The new 2-franc stamp will only be used by the U.N. post office at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. Even though the stamp would be released on a very significant day, it has been declared as a definitive issue.

The stamp depicts an engraved-style portrait of Mandela and a French quote translating to “It is easy to break down and destroy. The heroes are those who make peace and build.” The quote is an excerpt from a July 2008 speech by Mandela in Kliptown, Soweto.

The stamps are printed using the “offset lithography-duotone” process. They are made in two shades of the same colour or with black and one tint using two colour plates made with the screen set at different angles. 260,000 stamps (13,000 sheets) were printed in total.

Image Courtesy: United Nations Postal Administration