JULY 30 TO AUGUST 1, 1993
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great honour and privilege for me to welcome you all to this important Symposium on "Political Tolerance in South Africa: the Role of Opinion Makers and the Media". This symposium is being sponsored by the United Nations Special Committee against Apartheid in conjunction with two reputable organizations inside South Africa - the Institute for Multi-party Democracy (MPD) and the Institute for a Democratic Alternative in South Africa (IDASA). The outstanding work and commitment of these two organizations to the cause of a new, non-racial and democratic South Africa are very well known to all. May I thank them on your behalf for the excellent preparations made for this symposium. Let me also state at the outset that this is the first time ever that the UN Special Committee against Apartheid would, either alone or in conjunction with other organizations, hold such a function on the soil of South Africa. This, indeed, is an acknowledgement of the positive changes that have occurred in this country within the last three years.
That we are meeting in this beautiful city of Cape Town, so rich in history and culture, so hospitable and so determined in its commitment to a non-racial democracy in South Africa, is a good omen for our future work. I am very encouraged that so many prominent South African opinion-makers and media experts, academics and others have found it possible to join us in spite of their heavy schedules. I wish to also acknowledge the presence in our midst of the distinguished representatives of the United Nations Observer Mission in South Africa (UNOMSA), the Organization of African Unity, the Commonwealth Secretariat and the European Community to whom I wish to pay tribute for their steadfast commitment and work towards peace and reconciliation in South Africa.
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Much has happened in South Africa over the past three years. In spite of threats of all sorts and, indeed, despite the senseless and continuing political violence, the negotiating process has moved forward, largely because of the wisdom, resilience and determination of the majority of political leaders, both black and white, who have not allowed repeated provocations to derail the process. The Special Committee also believes that the unwavering support of the international community for the negotiated settlement of the conflict and the advent of a new, non-racial and democratic South Africa has played an important role in this complex crisis.
It will be recalled in this connection that in December 1989, Member States of the United Nations adopted by consensus - the first time ever in the history of the Organization - a landmark Declaration on South Africa that drew up a broad framework for a just, peaceful and lasting settlement of the conflict. By the same token, they committed themselves, individually and collectively, to providing international safeguards that would assist in bringing the negotiating process to a successful end.
The Special Committee on its part has a long tradition of standing side-by-side with the oppressed South African people in their long and painful journey to freedom, justice and equality of opportunity for all. Just as the international community stood firm on the side of the vast majority in South Africans for decades in opposition to apartheid, it has remained resolutely on the side of the oppressed South African people in facilitating a smooth transition to a new, non-racial constitutional order in South Africa.
Following the request by the African States to the UN Security Council in 1992 - to examine the issue of violence in South Africa and to take all appropriate action to put an end to it as well as to create conditions for negotiations leading towards a peaceful transition towards a democratic, non-racial and united South Africa - it adopted resolution 772 (1992) which authorized the Secretary-General to deploy the United Nations Observer Mission (UNOMSA) to South Africa. Observer missions from the Commonwealth, the European Community and the Organization of African Unity are also in place to promote the peaceful settlement of the conflict in South Africa.
That the Special Committee decided to hold a Symposium on Political Tolerance in South Africa focused on opinion-makers and the media is no coincidence. It is, indeed, a measure of the Committee's determination to promote the core values that underpin the whole structure in a multi-party democracy, very specifically, the central concept and practice of political tolerance with all they entail in terms of mutual respect, respect for the political views and opinions of others, the right to agree and to disagree, the duty to allow political opponents the right to speak, associate and organize freely. They involve of necessity the obligation to partake in the social compact in full harmony with others and to work towards the common good.
It is perhaps appropriate to mention here, the words of wisdom contained in the address by Mr. Federico Mayor, Director-General of UNESCO, at the International Meeting of Experts on the Problems of Tolerance in Istanbul, April 17, 1993:
"The conscious effort that has to be made to accept and appreciate otherness is also a road that has to be trodden in order to arrive at a democratic culture... Democracy, which lends itself to the expression of diversity, is also a way of social functioning in which every citizen must follow absolutely the rule of listening and understanding".
Political tolerance, as it has evolved from constitutional theory and practice, since the 18th century, is a core value that not only keeps the social structure together but also enables it to function smoothly. It underlies the checks-and-balance system that makes it possible for individuals in society to act freely as responsible citizens, in full awareness of their rights and obligations. Political tolerance, in a word, is the catalyst that makes it possible for enlightened self-interest to subsume harmoniously within the larger collective interest of which it is as much a cause as a consequence.
Tolerance in its manifold manifestations is very much part of the African tradition, the tradition of African humanism which can explain to a large extent how we have come this far in the negotiating process, how the broad masses have overcome the strictures and confines of past suffering to throw their weight behind democratic and constitutional change. Without African forbearance and forgiveness - which are key components of tolerance - many of the successes scored by the South African people on the long road to freedom, justice and equality of opportunities for all, would not have been possible.
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The concepts and practices of political tolerance, human rights and democracy are closely intertwined as are the twin concepts of democracy and development. These interrelationships have been duly acknowledged by the United Nations and integrated in its programmes aimed at bringing about peace and reconciliation, fostering the ongoing negotiating process and identifying ways in which members of the international community could assist in addressing the huge socio-economic inequalities resulting from decades of apartheid.
You will recall that last year, in Windhoek, the Special Committee organized a well-attended conference focusing international attention on the huge socio-economic disparities of the country as well as on the ways and means to address them during the transition period, particularly in the critical areas of housing, education, employment and health. I am heartened to note that the exchange of views that took place in Windhoek among South African participants and their international counterparts has become central to international aid agencies, including the World Bank.
That twin concern of the Special Committee for political tolerance and the advent of a non-racial constitutional democracy on the one hand, and sustainable development on the other, are predicated on the strong conviction that the best democratic institutions are unlikely to last unless they rest on strong and sound socio-economic foundations and on tangible improvements in living conditions of the poorer segments of society.
We know that this conviction is widely shared in South Africa and abroad. Now that South Africa is set on an irreversible course towards a new, non-racial and democratic order with universal suffrage elections set for 27 April 1994 and a Transitional Executive Council to be established soon, it is more important than ever that we bring everything to bear to contain and defuse political violence, enhance a climate conducive to free and fair elections through dedicated media involvement aimed at making the broad masses in the cities, in the townships and rural areas of South Africa more aware of their rights and obligations in a non-racial democracy. Who else is better equipped to initiate and carry out these campaigns than the distinguished South African opinion-makers and editors, publishers, academics, religious leaders and others that have assembled here today. Your access to the parties involved in the Multi-party Negotiating Forum (MPNF), your wise counsel and personal commitment to a new democratic and non-racial South Africa, can make a critical contribution in the months ahead. Given your capability to reach out into the length and breadth of the country, opinion-makers and the media of South Africa constitute probably the most effective channel available during this transitional period to monitor and report on the peace process, to persuade public opinion of the imperative of national reconciliation and to promote public understanding of crucial issues which affect the lives of every South African. For two days, you will exchange views on what to do and how to do it. Some of you already know each other. I hope that this will be an opportunity for all of us to get to know one another even better. But let us remember that the success of our common endeavours at this gathering will depend not only on the understanding we may reach here, but above all, on the follow-up action by opinion-makers and the media represented here and by others who will decide to join. It will depend also on what private foundations and non-governmental organizations in South Africa and abroad are prepared to do to spread the good word and promote tolerance, peace and reconciliation.
We in the Special Committee have no doubt that all men and women of goodwill in South Africa shall respond to the call. We know that, somehow, South Africans will find within themselves, the strength and resolve to rise above their differences and forge a common future. As we were with them on the long and arduous journey to freedom and justice for all, so shall we remain with them at this critical time of transition until success is achieved.
Let us all remember that a new, non-racial South Africa could only be sustained if it has a solid foundation of respect for fundamental human rights that encompasses a willingness to coexist with differences, a culture of respect for the rule of law drawn up for the protection of all its citizens and applied equally to all of its citizens, as well as the provision of equal opportunities for the economic and social wellbeing of all. And to paraphrase the words of the Director-General of UNESCO, Mr. Federico Mayor, South Africans would need to express a new unanimous resolve in the face of contemporary crises and it must not be just a rejection of intolerance but a powerful affirmation of the value of tolerance itself and of the values with which tolerance is closely linked: democracy, human rights and solidarity.
Because of its resource endowment and its seasoned leadership, both black and white, and because of its suffering too, South Africa has much to contribute to Africa and to the world. We look forward to the time when South Africa, reconciled with itself, can forge ahead with confidence as a full partner in the international community.
Thank you for your attention and I wish you a very rewarding and fruitful deliberations.