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MY RESERVATIONS ON THE FWDK FOUNDATION’S STATEMENT: APARTHEID A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY

Response letter to the FW de Klerk statement on apartheid as a crime against humanity. 


Dr FW De Klerk
The FW De Klerk Foundation
P. O. Box 15785
Panorama
7506
16 February 2020
Dear Dr De Klerk,

MY RESERVATIONS ON THE FWDK FOUNDATION’S STATEMENT: APARTHEID A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY
In my acceptance of appointment to the FW De Klerk Foundation, I specifically wrote.

“I am looking forward to becoming a part in a community that declares its vision as upholding South Africa’s National Accord, and if you allow me, the values enshrined in its constitution as a founding treatise for future generations”.
The values that I meant are captured in the preamble of the Constitution that entrenched the National Accord, and the Preamble declares;

 “We, the people of South Africa, Recognise the injustices of our past; Honour those who suffered for justice and freedom in our land; Respect those who have worked to build and develop our country; and Believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our diversity. We therefore, through our freely elected representatives, adopt this Constitution as the supreme law of the Republic so as to
Heal the divisions of the past and establish a society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights;
Lay the foundations for a democratic and open society in which government is based on the will of the people and every citizen is equally protected by law;
Improve the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each person; and,
 Build a united and democratic South Africa able to take its rightful place as a sovereign state in the family of nations”.
More specific to my decision was, “We, the people of South Africa, Recognise the injustices of our past”, and “Respect those who have worked to build and develop our country.”
I am raising my objection to the statement issued by the Foundation, which by implication includes me as being in agreement with its contents.
I stand by the United Nation’s characterisation of Apartheid as a crime against humanity. No comparison of the number of physical deaths under apartheid compared to other genocides will change the many deaths, physical or otherwise, Bantu Black South Africans were subjected to.
The dictionary definition of genocide is
“the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular nation, ethnic group or race group”
It is my submission that under Apartheid, Bantu Blacks were subjected to conditions that constituted a genocide of a special type. There were deliberate policies that were designed to condemn Bantu Blacks into ‘township’s and ‘lokasies’, most of which had at most three exit points. The education system was designed towards specific outcomes, economic participation laws were designed to make the Bantu Black  a consumer at best, but a manager of the consumer system at most. The revelations of many security police members also indicate that there was a deliberate plan to kill and maim those opposed to Apartheid. I can continue giving reasons why I submit that Apartheid was a genocide of a special type, and should thus be permanently treated as a crime against humanity, unless Bantu Blacks are not in the category of humans.
In accepting my appointment, I was and remain encouraged, by the founding statement and values that the foundation stands for. I have defended those values in many a conferences, there are moments where my career was truncated as a result of me believing in the founding statement of the foundation.
In his recognition of your presence at the SONA, President Ramaphosa referred to you as “Former Deputy President, FW De Klerk”, a clear indication of how many South Africans recognize your contribution to this democracy, and never your past beyond 1990, as it evokes a past we directed into the annals of a history never to be celebrated by our society
I have pondered on what form of response is befitting to the statement beyond raising my contempt and objection, I came to the conclusion that I should continue serving, and for no remuneration, in the Foundation in order to ensure that the mission of the Foundation outlives us as it protects future generations
It would be prudent and wise if the statement is withdrawn in its entirety, should you require any additional information I will be happy to oblige
Ndza Khensa
 
Dr FM Lucky Mathebula
+27 82 853 3914
lucky@justthinc.co.za
http://drluckymathebula.blogspot.com/
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” Phil 4:13

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