Apartheid was a system of
racial discrimination and
segregation by the South African government. It was formalised in 1948, forming a framework for political and economic dominance by the
white population and severely restricting the political rights of the
black majority. Between 1960 and 1990, the
African National Congress and other mainly black opposition political organisations were banned. As the
National Party cracked down on black opposition to apartheid, most leaders of ANC and other opposition organisations were either killed, imprisoned, or went into exile. However, increasing local and international pressure on the government, as well as the realisation that apartheid could neither be maintained by force forever nor overthrown by the opposition without considerable suffering, eventually led both sides to the negotiating table. The
Tripartite Accord, which brought an end to the
South African Border War in neighbouring Angola and Namibia, created a window of opportunity to create the enabling conditions for a negotiated settlement, recognized by
Niel Barnard of the National Intelligence Service.
Mahlabatini Declaration of Faith: January 1974 On 4 January 1974,
Harry Schwarz, leader of the liberal-reformist wing of the
United Party, met with
Gatsha (later Mangosuthu) Buthelezi, Chief Executive Councillor of the black homeland of
KwaZulu and signed a five-point plan for racial peace in South Africa, which came to be known as the
Mahlabatini Declaration of Faith. The declaration stated that "the situation of South Africa in the world scene as well as internal community relations requires, in our view, an acceptance of certain fundamental concepts for the economic, social, and constitutional development of our country." It called for negotiations involving all peoples, in order to draw up constitutional proposals stressing opportunity for all with a
Bill of Rights to safeguard these rights. It suggested that the federal concept was the appropriate framework for such changes to take place. It also affirmed that political change must take place through non-violent means. The declaration was the first of such agreements by acknowledged black and white political leaders in South Africa that affirmed to these principles. The commitment to the peaceful pursuit of political change was declared at a time when neither the National Party nor the African National Congress was looking to peaceful solutions or dialogue. The declaration was heralded by the English speaking press as a breakthrough in race relations in South Africa. Shortly after it was issued, the declaration was endorsed by several chief ministers of the black homelands, including
Cedric Phatudi (
Lebowa),
Lucas Mangope (
Bophuthatswana) and Hudson Nisanwisi (
Gazankulu). Despite considerable support from black leaders, the English speaking press and liberal figures such as
Alan Paton, the declaration saw staunch opposition from the National Party, the Afrikaans press and the conservative wing of Harry Schwarz's United Party.
Early contact: 1980s The very first meetings between the South African Government and
Nelson Mandela were driven by the
National Intelligence Service (NIS) under the leadership of
Niel Barnard and his Deputy Director General,
Mike Louw. These meetings were secret in nature and were designed to develop an understanding about whether there were sufficient common grounds for future peace talks. As these meetings evolved, a level of trust developed between the key actors (Barnard, Louw, and Mandela). The first less-tentative meeting between Mandela and the
National Party government came while
P. W. Botha was
State President. In November 1985, Minister
Kobie Coetsee met Mandela in the hospital while Mandela was being treated for prostate surgery. Over the next four years, a series of tentative meetings took place, laying the groundwork for further contact and future negotiations, but little real progress was made and the meetings remained secret until several years later. The operational objective of this meeting was not to understand the opinions of the actors themselves—that was very well known at this stage within strategic management circles—but rather to gauge public opinion about a movement away from the previous security posture of confrontation and repression to a new posture based on engagement and accommodation.
Reforms announced: February 1990 When
F. W. de Klerk became president in 1989, he was able to build on the previous secret negotiations with Mandela. The first significant steps towards formal negotiations took place in February 1990 when, in his
speech at the opening of Parliament, de Klerk announced the repeal of the ban on the ANC and other banned political organisations, as well as Mandela's release after 27 years in prison. Mandela was released on 11 February 1990 and direct talks between the ANC and the government were scheduled to begin on 11 April. However, on 26 March, 11 protestors were killed by
police in the
Sebokeng massacre, and the ANC announced on 31 March that it intended to pull out of the negotiations indefinitely. The talks were only rescheduled after an emergency meeting between Mandela and de Klerk, held in early April. ==Early "talks about talks"==