F. W. de Klerk
F. W. de Klerk was a significant political figure in South Africa, serving as the last State President under apartheid and playing a pivotal role in the country’s transition to a multiracial democracy. Born in Johannesburg, he was educated in law and initially entered the legal profession before shifting to politics, where he followed in the footsteps of his politically active family. De Klerk’s political career began in earnest in the 1970s, and he rose through the ranks of the National Party, eventually becoming its leader in 1989.
Upon taking office as State President, de Klerk made landmark decisions to dismantle apartheid, including lifting the ban on the African National Congress and releasing Nelson Mandela from prison. His leadership facilitated negotiations that culminated in the end of institutionalized racial segregation and the establishment of a new constitution, leading to South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994. For his efforts in promoting peace and reconciliation, de Klerk was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize alongside Mandela in 1993. After leaving the presidency, he continued to engage in national and global leadership initiatives, founding the F. W. de Klerk Foundation and the Global Leadership Foundation, which focus on democracy and development. De Klerk’s legacy is one of transformation and complex historical significance in South Africa.
F. W. de Klerk
President of South Africa
- Born: March 18, 1936
- Birthplace: Johannesburg, South Africa
F. W. de Klerk was instrumental in ending apartheid and rebuilding South Africa as a democratic nation. His emphasis on negotiation as a means of resolving the issues of apartheid brought relative peace to the country.
Early Life
F. W. de Klerk, the son of Johannes de Klerk and Corrie Coetzer de Klerk, was born in Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa. De Klerk received his early education in the Krugersdorf schools. After graduating from Monument High School, he became a student at the Potchefstroom University for Higher Education. During his years at the university, he was very active in student affairs. He received a bachelor's degree and, in 1958, a law degree cum laude.
After completing his university studies, de Klerk joined a law firm at Vereeniging in the province of Transvaal. As a member of the firm, he was instrumental in building its reputation as one of the leading law firms outside the primary metropolitan areas. Just as he had played a significant role in student affairs at college, he took an active interest in the community of Vereeniging and participated in community affairs.
In 1972, de Klerk’s expertise in law brought him a job offer as chair of administrative law at Potchefstroom University. However, having decided to enter politics, de Klerk opted not to accept the position. De Klerk’s family had a long tradition of involvement in South African politics as conservatives who supported apartheid. His great-grandfather had been a member of the Senate, and his grandfather had twice been a candidate for the all-white Parliament. His father was a member of the right-wing National Party, which had introduced apartheid upon coming to power in 1948, and had served as cabinet minister and president of the Senate, as well as interim state president for eleven days in 1975.
De Klerk’s long and successful political career would lead him away from the long-established policy of racial segregation supported by generations of his family. For this change he would earn the Nobel Peace Prize.
Life’s Work
In November 1972, de Klerk began his active career in South African politics. He was elected to Parliament on behalf of Vereeniging and served in this position for five and a half years. In 1978, he was appointed to the cabinet as minister of posts and telecommunications and social welfare and pensions. In the eleven years he served in the cabinet, he was responsible for a variety of ministries, including sport and recreation, mining and environmental planning, mineral and energy affairs, internal affairs, public service, and national education.
In March of 1982, de Klerk was elected to lead the National Party in the Transvaal province. In 1985, he accepted the chairmanship of the ministers’ council in the House of Assembly, and on December 1, 1986, he became the assembly’s leader. During his time as the province’s National Party leader, de Klerk followed the traditionally conservative politics of his family. As minister of education, he supported segregated universities. However, in 1989, not only did he align himself with the verligte (enlightened) members of the National Party, he also became their leader. In February of that year, he was elected head of the party.
In February 1989, South African president P. W. Botha, who had suffered a stroke several weeks earlier, stepped down as leader of the National Party, and the party's parliamentary caucus elected de Klerk as his successor. Although he had resigned from party leadership, Botha was determined to remain in office until his term ended the following year, even as his faculties were rapidly declining. In August 1989, de Klerk and a number of other cabinet ministers forced Botha to agree to take sick leave, effectively resigning his position.
De Klerk assumed the role of acting state president on August 15. He was officially elected to the position on September 6, 1989, and inaugurated two weeks later. In his opening speech to Parliament, he promised to end institutionalized discrimination. The following year, he lifted the ban on the African National Congress (ANC) political party, which had been outlawed since 1960, and freed antiapartheid activist and party leader Nelson Mandela, who had been imprisoned for the past twenty-seven years for his antigovernment activities with a militant branch of the ANC.
On February 1, 1991, de Klerk announced at the opening session of Parliament that he intended to pass legislation that would strike down any and all remaining apartheid laws. Ongoing negotiations between the de Klerk's National Party and Mandela's ANC led to the elimination of apartheid and a new constitution for South Africa, with voting equality for all South Africans in 1993.
On April 27, 1994, the country held free elections, and Mandela was elected president. De Klerk left office on May 10 but remained part of the government, serving as co–deputy president in the Mandela administration alongside future president Thabo Mbeki. De Klerk remained in this position until 1996, when the National Party withdrew from the Government of National Unity. From that time until his retirement from politics in September of the following year, he was the leader of the official opposition.
Significance
De Klerk helped to transform South Africa, working to end apartheid and radically change the political, economic, and social profile of that country. His work did not stop there; he also worked for peace, democracy, and economic development around the world, particularly in countries with diverse populations. In 1999, he published his autobiography, The Last Trek: A New Beginning . In January 2000, he established the F. W. de Klerk Foundation, and in March 2004, he set up the Global Leadership Foundation.
Throughout his career, de Klerk received numerous awards and honors. In 1981, he was awarded the South African Decoration for Meritorious Service. In 1992, he received the UNESCO Houphouët-Boigny Prize, the Prix du Courage Internationale (Prize for Political Courage), and the Spanish Prince of Asturias Prize. In 1993, he and Mandela were both awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and the Philadelphia Liberty Medal. In 2002, South African president Thabo Mbeki bestowed the Order of Mapungubwe on both Mandela and de Klerk for their contributions to peace and reconciliation in South Africa.
Personal Life
De Klerk married Marike Willemse in 1959, shortly after he graduated from law school. The couple had two sons and a daughter. In 1998, de Klerk divorced Willemse and married Elita Georgiadis, with whom he had been having a long-standing affair.
Willemse was murdered in December 2001. A security guard at her apartment complex was later arrested and convicted of the crime.
Bibliography
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