Apartheid May Die a Peaceful Death : South Africa: A commitment to dialogue, however fragile and uncertain, seems to be emerging. We must do what we can to nourish and encourage it.

Although overshadowed by events in Eastern Europe, the political climate in South Africa, too, is undergoing significant change. South Africans, black and white, are shaking off old assumptions and rigidities and contemplating fresh approaches to differences that seemed irreconcilable even a year ago. The evolving process is still fragile and uncertain, but there is new hope on all sides that it may yet prove possible to reach agreement on a peaceful transition to a non-racial, democratic society in South Africa.

Last summer’s meeting between then-President Pieter W. Botha and Nelson Mandela, imprisoned leader of the African National Congress, was a signal of the South African government’s recognition that the country’s future cannot be settled unless there is dialogue with credible opposition leaders. Internal and external pressures, among which sanctions are only one element, have helped persuade South African leaders that the well-being of the white minority cannot be sustained without a negotiated political settlement that results in political equality for all South Africans.

Claiming a mandate for change after last fall’s elections, President Frederik W. de Klerk has taken a number of encouraging steps to get this process under way. He has permitted peaceful anti-apartheid demonstrations and rallies, freed leading political prisoners, announced plans to discard the Separate Amenities Act, scaled down the state security apparatus and met with credible black leaders, including Mandela. It is premature to predict whether these steps will lead to a continuing dialogue, but they constitute tangible evidence that things are changing, and they offer reason for hope.

The United States has long regarded dialogue among all South Africans as the most important first step in the process of change. Moves that would further enhance prospects for dialogue include: an end to violence on all sides; the release of all political prisoners, including Mandela; the lifting of the state of emergency and associated restrictions on political activity and freedom of association for the black opposition, and the unbanning of all political organizations, including the African National Congress.

U.S. policy toward South Africa is guided by five basic principles:

-- Unequivocal opposition to apartheid;

-- Commitment to building a post-apartheid democratic South Africa through assistance to black South Africans;

-- Active U.S. diplomacy to resolve conflicts and support economic development throughout southern Africa;

-- Cooperation with our allies and other concerned nations in a multilateral approach to South Africa;

-- Maintenance of a bipartisan consensus with Congress on our general approach to the region.

For its part, the anti-apartheid movement must look beyond the rhetoric of the past to find creative ways of responding to the unexpected opportunities that may now be arising. Anti-apartheid activists should work to achieve consensus among diverse and often hostile opposition elements, and to formulate constructive principles for the negotiating process that may be emerging. There are signs that such an effort, with the support of the international community, is already beginning.

The ANC has indicated that it is taking the possibility of dialogue seriously. Its expressed preference for the path of negotiated and peaceful settlement was endorsed in 1989 by the Organization of African Unity. The consensus declaration adopted at the conclusion of the United Nations special session on apartheid Dec. 14 not only urged the people of South Africa to join together to negotiate an end to apartheid; it also postulated fundamental principles that could constitute the basis for an internationally acceptable solution in South Africa.

Clearly, a non-racial, democratic South Africa is not yet at hand. While their overall numbers have diminished, political detainees, including Nelson Mandela, are still in custody, the state of emergency remains in effect and black-on-black violence has not abated. But there is a growing sense that the majority of South Africans of all races may be ready to seize this opportunity to break out of the isolation imposed by apartheid and rejoin the international community of free nations.

The United States stands ready, through contact with all parties, to do everything possible to promote this process. And we hope that negotiations and peaceful change, as called for in the recent U.N. declaration, will become the norm for the international community’s approach to South Africa.