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F. W. de Klerk

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Frederik Willem de Klerk
File:FWdeKlerk.jpg
10th President of South Africa
In office
1989 – 10 May 1994
PresidentNelson Mandela
Preceded byPieter Willem Botha
Succeeded byNelson Mandela
Co-Deputy President of South Africa
In office
10 May 1994 – 1996
Personal details
Born (1936-03-18) March 18, 1936 (age 88)
Johannesburg, Gauteng
Political partyNational Party

Frederik Willem de Klerk (born March 18, 1936) was the last State President of Apartheid-era South Africa, serving from September 1989 to May 1994. De Klerk was also leader of the National Party (which later became the New National Party) from February 1989 to September 1997.

De Klerk is best known for agreeing to end apartheid, South Africa's racial segregation policy, and supporting the transformation of South Africa into a multi-racial democracy by entering into the negotiations that resulted in all citizens, including the country's black majority, having equal voting and other rights. He shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Nelson Mandela in 1993 for his role in the ending of apartheid.

He was the Deputy President of South Africa during the presidency of Nelson Mandela until 1996. In 1997, he retired from politics.

Early career

Born in Johannesburg, de Klerk is the son of former Senator Johannes "Jan" de Klerk and a nephew of J.G. Strijdom (Prime Minister from 1954–58). His brother Willem is a liberal newspaperman and one of the founders of the Democratic Party. After completing high school in Krugersdorp, de Klerk graduated in 1958 from the Potchefstroom University with BA and LL.B degrees (the latter cum laude). Following graduation, de Klerk practiced law in Vereeniging in the Transvaal. In 1969 he married Marike Willemse, with whom he had two sons and a daughter.

"F.W.", as he became popularly known, was first elected to the South African Parliament in 1969 as the member for Vereeniging, and entered the cabinet in 1978. De Klerk had been offered a professorship of administrative law at Potchefstroom in 1972 but he declined the post because he was serving in Parliament. In 1978, he was appointed Minister of Posts and Telecommunications and Social Welfare and Pensions by Prime Minister Vorster. Under Prime Minister P.W. Botha, he held a succession of ministerial posts, including Posts and Telecommunications and Sports and Recreation (1978-1979), Mines, Energy and Environmental Planning (1979-1980), Mineral and Energy Affairs (1980-1982), Internal Affairs (1982-1985), and National Education and Planning (1984-1989). He became Transvaal provincial National Party leader in 1982. In 1985, he became chairman of the Minister's Council in the House of Assembly. On December 1, 1986, he became the leader of the House of Assembly.

Ending apartheid

As Minister of National Education, F.W. de Klerk was a supporter of segregated universities, and as a leader of the National Party in Transvaal, he was not known to advocate reform. However, after a long political career and with a very conservative reputation, in 1989 he placed himself at the head of verligte ("enlightened") forces within the governing party, with the result that he was elected head of the National Party in February 1989, and finally State President in September 1989 to replace then president P.W. Botha when the latter was forced to step down after a stroke.

In his first speech after assuming the party leadership he called for a non-racist South Africa and for negotiations about the country's future. He lifted the ban on the ANC and released Nelson Mandela. He brought apartheid to an end and opened the way for the drafting of a new constitution for the country based on the principle of one person, one vote. Nevertheless, he was accused by the close friend of Mandela, Anthony Sampson, of complicity in the violence between the ANC, the Inkatha Freedom Party and elements of the security forces. In Mandela: The Authorised Biography Sampson accuses de Klerk of permitting his ministers to build their own criminal empires.

After the first free elections in 1994, de Klerk became vice-president in the government of national unity under Nelson Mandela, a post he kept until 1996. In 1997 he also gave over the leadership of the National Party and retreated from politics.

Later life

In 1998, de Klerk and his wife of 38 years, Marike, were divorced following the discovery of his affair with Elita Georgiades [1], then the wife of Tony Georgiades, a Greek shipping tycoon who had allegedly given de Klerk and the NP financial support[2]. Soon after his divorce, de Klerk and Georgiades were married. This turn of events scandalised conservative South African opinion, especially among the Calvinist Afrikaners. Then, in 2001, the country was shocked by the violent death of his ex-wife[3], apparently at the hands of a young security guard during the course of a robbery.

In 2004, de Klerk announced that he was quitting the New National Party and seeking a new political home after it was announced that the NNP would merge with the ruling ANC.

In 2006, he underwent surgery for a malignant tumour in his colon, discovered after an examination on 3 June. His condition deteriorated sharply, and he underwent a second operation after developing respiratory problems. On 13 June it was announced that he was to undergo a tracheotomy.[4][5][6] He has since recovered and on September 11th, 2006 gave a speech at Kent State University's Stark Campus in North Canton, OH.[7] In 2006, he underwent triple coronary artery bypass surgery[8]

De Klerk is currently serving as the chairman of the pro-peace FW de Klerk Foundation. FW De Klerk is an Honorary Patron of the University Philosophical Society. He also sits on the Advisory Board of the Global Panel Foundation and leads the Global Leadership Forum.[9][10]

Public opinion of de Klerk

A minority of white South Africans regard de Klerk as a traitor[11]. It is commonly felt by this group that he misrepresented the path that South Africa was taking with regard to the March, 1992 referendum. The end of apartheid saw a massive surge in crime in all areas and a sudden, substantial and sustained increase in violent crime.[12][13] [14][15]The desegregation of public facilities, especially schools, the loss of basic municipal service, and the total "Africanisation" of the public sector and the accompanied drastic decline in service delivery were not predicted by de Klerk and could not reasonably have been predicted. The lack of economic reform in the early years is largly to blame for poor conditions and alienation of large groups within south africa. [16] The final consequence of de Klerk's actions were to reintegrate South Africa into the community of nations but this resulted in a small proportion of the political franchise.[17] In the first ten years after the "New South Africa" started, a million whites emigrated, it is unkown how many tried to leave during the apartheid era like Shaun Thomson, a world class surfer who became a US citizen in reaction to the policies of South Africa in the 1970's and 1980's[18]

The de Klerk Name

The name 'de Klerk' (literally meaning "the clerk" in Dutch) is derived from Le Clerc / Le Clercq / De Clercq and is of French Huguenot origin [19], as are a great number of other Afrikaans surnames, reflecting the large number of French Huguenot refugees who settled in the Cape beginning in the seventeenth century as refugees escaping religious persecution.


Quotes

There are a number of imperfections in the new South Africa where I would have hoped that things would be better, but on balance I think we have basically achieved what we set out to achieve. And if I were to draw balance sheets on where South Africa stands now, I would say that the positive outweighs the negative by far. There is a tendency by commentators across the world to focus on the few negatives which are quite negative, like how are we handling AIDS, like our role vis-a-vis Zimbabwe. But the positives— the stability in South Africa, the adherence to well-balanced economic policies, fighting inflation, doing all the right things in order to lay the basis and the foundation for sustained economic growth— it’s in place.

(De Klerk about the present state of South Africa, in an interview with US-Journalist Richard Stengel 2004. Source: http://www.cfr.org/publication/7114/hbo_history_makers_series.html?breadcrumb=%2Fregion%2F151%2Fsouthern_africa )


References

  1. ^ "Ex-wife of De Klerk Murdered: S. African Police". People's Daily Online. 2001-12-06. Retrieved 2006-04-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ Crawford-Browne, Terry. "A question of priorities". Peace News Issue 2442. Retrieved 2006-04-18.
  3. ^ "Marike killer may face life behind bars". Dispatch Online. 2003-05-14. Retrieved 2006-04-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ "FW undergoes tumour surgery". 2006-06-03. Retrieved 2006-06-09. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ "FW de Klerk 'stable'". 2006-06-09. Retrieved 2006-06-09. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "FW to have tracheotomy". 2006-06-13. Retrieved 2006-06-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ "FW de Klerk Foundation Website - Speeches". 2006-09-11. Retrieved 2006-09-11. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/africa/12/21/btsc.koinange.deklerk/index.html
  9. ^ http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/africa/12/21/btsc.koinange.deklerk/index.html
  10. ^ http://www.economist.com/world/africa/displayStory.cfm?story_id=4277319
  11. ^ http://www.stanford.edu/group/sjir/3.1.07_deklerk.html
  12. ^ http://www.africaguide.com/forum/safrica/295.html
  13. ^ http://www.escapeartist.com/efam/55/South_Africa_Commentary.html
  14. ^ http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/1998/africa/s.africa/
  15. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_in_South_Africa
  16. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/18/newsid_2524000/2524695.stm
  17. ^ http://www.amren.com/0405issue/0405issue.html#cover
  18. ^ http://surfline.com/surfaz/surfaz.cfm?id=929
  19. ^ Lugan, Bernard (1996). Ces Francais Qui Ont Fait L'Afrique Du Sud ("The French People Who Made South Africa"). Bartillat. ISBN 2-84100-086-9.
Preceded by State President of South Africa
1989-1994 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
–
 Co-Deputy President of South Africa (with Thabo Mbeki)
1994-1996 		Succeeded by

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