Pik Botha, who served as foreign affairs minister under three apartheid presidents before becoming minister of mineral and energy affairs in Nelson Mandela’s government of national unity was a colourful personality who made friends – and enemies – across the spectrum throughout his long political career.
Botha died at the age of 86 in Pretoria on Thursday evening.
As foreign affairs minister in the cabinets of apartheid presidents BJ Vorster and PW Botha, Botha fought a losing battle to persuade the world that the policy was not a fundamental violation of human rights.
He established a relationship with US secretary of state Henry Kissinger and managed to influence then US president Ronald Reagan and British prime minister Margaret Thatcher to oppose sanctions against SA.
He worked to build a coalition of African states that would work with the apartheid regime, but this was ultimately unsuccessful as the continent turned on the apartheid state.
Botha, who came from the party’s “verligte” (enlightened) wing, attempted to get PW Botha to accept greater political rights for black South Africans and outraged the apartheid establishment when he stated publicly that the country would one day have a black president.
His greatest diplomatic achievement was the successful negotiation of independence for Namibia, a series of talks that involved Cuba and the US.
Botha retired from politics in 1996 when the National Party withdrew from the government of national unity, and later joined the ANC.
Former president FW de Klerk said Botha’s contribution to the peaceful settlement in SA was immense.
“He was a unique and colourful personality who made an enormous contribution to the peaceful and constitutional resolution of the great historic challenges with which we had to wrestle before 1994‚” De Klerk said in a statement released by his foundation.
De Klerk said Botha’s “colourful style and forthright rhetoric” won him widespread popularity among the white electorate and had also encouraged him‚ in 1978 and 1989‚ to stand as a candidate for the leadership of the National Party.
He said Botha’s most important contribution was the manner in which he and his colleagues in the department of foreign affairs “held the line” against growing international pressure – until the collapse of international communism in 1989 opened the way to the negotiations that led to the establishment of a non-racial constitutional democracy.
De Klerk said Botha was a “prominent and consistent” advocate of reform when discussions within the NP leadership in the 1980s took place over whether to release Mandela from prison.
Botha was one of the strongest proponents of the constitutional transformation process that was initiated in 1990. UDM leader Bantu Holomisa said Botha had been a bold negotiator and an intelligent opponent.
Holomisa said Botha was one of few NP leaders who opposed apartheid.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said Botha would be remembered for his support for the country’s transition to democracy.
ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe said Botha was one of few NP leaders who realised at an early stage that apartheid was wrong and a crime against humanity. Mabe said: “We acknowledge him for his positive contribution towards building a new and better South Africa. May his soul rest in peace.”
Mabe said although nothing had been confirmed as yet‚ Botha’s funeral would likely take place during the week of October 22 as “there will most probably be quite a number of people flying in from all parts of the world”.
Botha leaves his second wife‚ Ina‚ four children and eight grandchildren. – DDC..