FBIS3-43257 "drafr001_c_94021"
FBIS-AFR-94-001 Document Type:Daily Report 3 Jan 1994
REPUBLIC of SOUTH AFRICA

South African Press Review for 3 Jan

MB0301130094 MB0301130094 Article Type:BFN [Editorial Report]
THE CITIZEN
De Klerk Loses White, Afrikaner Support -- The world is "in awe" that South Africa "could change so dramatically in less than four years without a shot being fired, without a revolution taking place, without civil war breaking out," declares the page 6 editorial in Johannesburg THE CITIZEN in English on 31 December. Yet, "by acting swiftly, Mr de Klerk has not been able to take his people along with him, polls showing that he has lost White, and particularly Afrikaner, support. And by acting so quickly, he may have sparked a resistance that could endanger the whole carefully structured change to a new South Africa."
THE STAR
National Reconciliation Major Task of Country -- "National reconciliation" will be the "major test" before South Africa in 1994, says Johannesburg THE STAR in English on 3 January in a page 8 editorial. "Much progress" was made in 1993, but "with political violence leading to more than 3,000 deaths in 1993, a great deal of work remains to be done to bring peace to this country. Reconciliation is not, however, incompatible with political competition, provided the rivalry is tempered by tolerance and permeated by a democratic ethos. We do not want false reconciliation, a saccharine fraternity which denies differences." The African National Congress, ANC, has a "special responsibility" in the months ahead, because with its allies it is the "dominant political force and its influence is especially strong in the numerically important black community. The ANC's unofficial status as the government-in-waiting brings with it a proportionately heavy burden. By discharging it wisely, the ANC can help secure the future and facilitate fulfilment of its declared mission of reconstruction and reconciliation." Labor Party Colored Adjunct to ANC -- Allan Hendrickse, the leader of the Labor Party, is "amply entitled to be sour about the Nats, whether or not his vitriol relates to an embarrassment over the pension his co-operation with the Nats has given him," says a page 8 editorial in Johannesburg THE STAR in English on 31 December. "But it was odd to use an (intended) valediction to virtually wish his party into oblivion. The Labour Party has become a kind of coloured adjunct of the ANC, not quite a real party, not quite a mere branch. It should make up its mind, and preferably it should decide to fight on its own right. Small parties should be allowed to flower." An alliance is good but "a real alliance requires two parties with two identities."
BUSINESS DAY
1994 Promises Democracy, Challenges -- Johannesburg BUSINESS DAY in English on 3 January in a page 6 editorial says a new government must, among other things, "set in motion a long-term plan to disarm the country." This should be done by "tightening controls and imposing heavier penalties on people with unlicensed weapons." As important to the country will be the economic policies of the new government. "On monetary policy, the status granted to the Reserve Bank, given the ambiguous wording on the matter in the new constitution, will be the critical determinant of economic confidence. An independent Reserve Bank is crucial." Besides its economic policies, the new government will need to restructure the civil service, "if only to correct past racial imbalances. If that leads to appointments being made on merit, we score a bonus. If, instead, jobs are allocated as rewards for service to the 'struggle', we face disaster." The year ahead promises a new democratic society, "but it also guarantees challenges which, depending on how they are met, will determine whether that promise materialises."
SOWETAN
Pub Massacre Path to Civil War -- Johannesburg SOWETAN in English on 3 January in a page 6 editorial refers to the weekend attack on a pub in Heidelberg, in which four people died and five were seriously injured, saying "It will be very easy for the perpetrators of this horror and their supporters to argue that blacks are dying daily in the political violence in this country and that the response is never as prompt and loud. They may argue that they are avenging those killed in the townships. This would be a puerile argument because, instead of solving the problem, it worsens it. The massacre is one step down the path to civil war."
RAPPORT
Stronger Moderate Middle Ground Needed -- "The horror attack on defenseless civilians in a Cape Town tavern is a cruel contradiction to South Africa's so-called Year of Peace which began yesterday," says an editorial on page 16 of Johannesburg RAPPORT in Afrikaans on 2 January. "Judging from this atrocity, and similar earlier ones, and the continuing violence taking place on the Reef and in Natal in particular, there are clearly still segments of the population which do not see peace as the top priority in this election year. Brutal violence is still viewed by some as a necessary political instrument." The death of hundreds "underlines the fact that not everyone is committed to peaceful politicking within the framework of the new constitution. And the urgent talks with the Freedom Alliance in the days and weeks ahead confirm that those on the outside number more than just the roving bands of murderers." Of course, "not everyone can ever be bound by any new constitution, and for the foreseeable future there will be militants who will have to be held in check mercilessly. But atrocities such as the one in Cape Town conjure up a frighening specter of much more extensive violence if we fail to negotiate a more inclusive constitution on time." "For that reason all right-minded South Africans are focussing their hopes on the leaders involved to intensify and broaden even further their search for solutions, because we cannot afford the alternative." RAPPORT concludes: "One can rightly says that South Africa will stand or fall by the emergence of an even stronger moderate middle ground which will do everything to eradicate radical violence totally from our society."