S. Africa’s ‘De Klerk Vacuum’

Former South African President Frederik W. de Klerk was known for his sense of political timing. “I would like to be remembered positively as one of the leaders who at the right time did the right thing,” he said, and he had. Elected president in 1989, he freed Nelson Mandela in 1990 and lifted the ban on the African National Congress. One year later he erased the apartheid laws that had made South Africa a pariah among nations.

And this week De Klerk announced he is quitting politics for good because “I know the time has come for me to go.” For the good of South Africa we hope he has not lost his sense of timing.

The nation’s preparations for the 1999 presidential elections and the likely realignment of opposition parties and leaders have created a volatile political situation, and De Klerk’s disappearance could be destabilizing. A look at his National Party roster does not present a figure who could match the old maestro.

It’s important to remember, however, that no discussion of De Klerk would be complete without inspecting the history of his National Party. The party institutionalized racial discrimination and kept it in place with an iron fist for more than four decades.

For the past two years De Klerk had been trying to transform the party. He sought to broaden its appeal to black citizens who felt uncomfortable with Mandela’s ANC. That effort largely failed, and the National Party remains a party of the whites. If the hard-liners take charge it surely will become irrelevant.

A historic figure of South Africa is stepping aside, and it is fitting to repeat the words of Mandela upon hearing the news: “I only hope South Africans will not forget the role De Klerk played in effecting a smooth transition from our painful past to the dispensation South Africa enjoys today.”