S. Africa Calls Sanctions ‘Perverse Action’

Foreign Minister Roelof F. (Pik) Botha on Tuesday described the mounting international moves against South Africa as “a mad, perverse action” and “totally unwarranted.”

He told a news conference that proposed U.S. sanctions, particularly a ban on agricultural products and textiles, would have “a damaging effect on the jobs of possibly many people, black and white” but would not diminish the government’s resolve to resist foreign pressure.

South Africa has accepted the inevitability of U.S. and other international sanctions, the foreign minister said, and sees them “as a challenge to overcome.”

‘Accept the Inevitable’

“We are prepared to accept the inevitable,” he continued. “We cannot allow other countries to make laws for us. . . . This will harm us, but it will not kill us.”

Botha also said that the Reagan Administration has advised the South African government that President Reagan will try again, as he did last year, to substitute an executive order imposing most of the sanctions contained in a bill approved by Congress.

He said his government expects Reagan to veto the measure but also expects that Congress will override the veto. Reagan will offer the executive order, Botha said his government was told, in the hope that Congress will withdraw the bill or sustain his veto.

The congressional action is “an attempt by Americans to cleanse themselves,” Botha said. “They have said that they are against apartheid, that the Americans are the good moral people of this world, and that is what they wanted. . . . But we reject on principle the interference of the U.S. Congress or the U.S. government in our internal affairs.”

Ban on Steel, Textiles

President Reagan has until midnight Friday to sign into law or veto the sanctions bill. Its provisions include a ban on imports of South African steel, iron, uranium, coal, textiles and agricultural products, the prohibition of new U.S. investment here and an end to airline flights between South Africa and the United States.

White House officials have said repeatedly that Reagan will veto the bill, which was approved by overwhelming majorities in both the Senate and House. But Reagan is reportedly looking for a compromise that will avoid a test of strength with Congress--a test he seems likely to lose, with the legislation becoming law over his objections.

Last year, faced with the prospect of similar legislation, Reagan signed an executive order banning imports of South Africa’s gold Krugerrand coins, prohibiting bank loans to government agencies and restricting the sale of computers and nuclear technology.

$500-Million Plan Reported

“I have reason to believe that the President might need to include further measures in his executive order in order to persuade a sufficient number of senators to sustain a veto,” Botha said.

He indicated that the presidential order might include most of the measures in the pending legislation as well as a reported $500 million in economic assistance to neighboring black-ruled countries and the appointment of a black American ambassador to Pretoria.

“We understand the President’s position, but understanding his position does not mean that we like it,” Botha continued. “My president is also under pressure. . . . We hope that people will understand the pressure he is under here.”

Ironic Element

South Africa finds it ironic, Botha said, that the American legislation contains, in addition to “23 different punitive measures,” substantial elements that his government likes. Among these is a call for the African National Congress, the principal guerrilla group fighting the minority white-led government, to end its violence and negotiate a resolution of the country’s problems.

“It is a pity that the U.S. President cannot veto part of the bill and endorse the rest,” Botha said.

Meanwhile, two more blacks, one a policeman, were reported killed in the continuing civil unrest.