Whites March, Decry Freedom for Mandela

As Nelson R. Mandela spoke earnestly here of his desire to allay white fears of a black government, 10,000 right-wing whites marched through the streets of Pretoria on Thursday to decry the black nationalist leader’s freedom.

“The New South Africa: Farewell Whites,” proclaimed one of the placards above the crowd, some of whom chanted: “Hang Mandela!”

The white-led protest, a rarity before President Frederik W. de Klerk began instituting sweeping reforms, closely resembled hundreds of black protests staged in South Africa over the years--complete with massive media coverage, hand-lettered signs and fists raised in defiance.

“The Afrikaner’s freedom struggle has begun,” declared Ferdie Hartzenberg, deputy leader of the far-right Conservative Party (CP). As the marchers ascended a hill from Church Square to City Hall, they chanted “Kaw-Peer, Kaw-Peer”--”C-P, C-P” in Afrikaans, the Dutch-German language of the country’s 17th-Century white settlers.

Meanwhile, Mandela told reporters from The Times and other newspapers that “we are prepared to address the fears of whites” and added that the process of ending the white monopoly on political power in the country must be done “as smoothly as possible.”

“Without their cooperation, we will have immense problems in this country.” Mandela said. “That is why we are so keen to give them guarantees that the changes we are demanding are not going to mean domination of whites by blacks.

“Once he (De Klerk) concedes that majority rule will be the solution, the African National Congress is prepared to address the fears of whites,” Mandela said. He added that the changes demanded by the ANC “will not mean that their (whites’) standards will be worsened.”

In a wide-ranging interview in his Soweto back yard, Mandela said that the drop in ANC bombings in the last year was not an indication that the anti-apartheid organization had decided to suspend the armed struggle. He also said that critics of the ANC’s stand on nationalization ignore the fact that their country already is heavily nationalized. He said he hopes that negotiations between the ANC and the government can begin within 12 months.

Mandela said the ANC’s guerrilla war, which he was imprisoned for launching 30 years ago, will continue until the government lifts the state of emergency and frees its political prisoners.

“The issue is not one of the armed struggle,” he said. “The issue in this country is one of apartheid.”

The government’s decision to legalize the ANC and lift some emergency regulations has gone only part of the way toward meeting the ANC’s demands, Mandela said.

“A partial move has led to hue and cry that we must now suspend or abandon the armed struggle,” he said. “That is not an attitude that we regard as reasonable.

“Since the ANC was formed in 1912, we have had wave after wave of violence from the government and many people have been killed in the cause of a peaceful struggle,” he added. “What does the world expect us to do in that situation?”

The ANC’s policy of nationalizing certain industries, such as banks and mines, has drawn criticism in recent days and led to sharp drops in South African markets because of the worries of overseas investors.

But Mandela noted that the white minority-led government already has many nationalized industries, from the state-run television station to the state-run airline. And he said the government is only now moving toward privatizing state monopolies because “they (whites) want to keep the wealth to themselves” before a black government comes to power.

“The question of nationalization is being looked at by whites, unfortunately, from their point of view solely, and not from the point of view of the country as a whole,” he added. “That is why they are making these somersaults” to privatize.

Asked about fears for his safety, Mandela said he wasn’t concerned. But, he added, “It is necessary to be careful. My colleagues have impressed upon me the necessity of security and I am obeying them.”

The whites who gathered Thursday in Pretoria were not convinced by Mandela’s conciliatory messages, and they sharply criticized De Klerk, whom they see as a traitor to the Afrikaner cause.

“My honest opinion is he (Mandela) wants to reassure us, but he can’t,” said J. P. du Plooy, a 36-year-old Pretoria mechanic. “And if he can’t even control his own people, then we must control them.”

The Conservative Party, which won 31% of the white vote in last September’s general elections, is likely to gain support from whites unhappy with the rapid speed of De Klerk’s reforms, political analysts say. And Conservative leaders said the Pretoria demonstration was the beginning of a campaign to win converts from De Klerk’s ruling National Party.

The thousands of white protesters, ranging in age from toddlers to the elderly, marched peacefully a half-mile through downtown Pretoria to City Hall. They included khaki-clad members of the Afrikaner Resistance Movement. Many marchers carried pistols on their hips. City Hall was quickly filled and thousands sat outside, watching Conservative Party leader Andries Treurnicht’s address on closed-circuit television.

The Afrikaner is “a friendly tiger--but don’t mess with him,” Treurnicht said to loud cheers. He added that most whites in South Africa oppose De Klerk’s reforms and he repeated the Conservatives’ demand for a separate white homeland.

“If we don’t protest, then the world will think we don’t care and that what they (the government) are doing is correct,” said Chris van den Heever, 36, a farmer who drove 120 miles to join the demonstration. “This is only the beginning.”

Many in the crowd criticized De Klerk’s decision to lift the 30-year ban on the ANC guerrilla group and to release Mandela, who had served 27 years of a life sentence for sabotage.

“F.W. (De Klerk) is now Mandela’s Prisoner,” said one sign in the crowd. Another stated: “27 Years a Bandit--Now a People’s Hero.”

A few blacks watched from the sidewalks, and they were advised by police to stay clear of the protesters. But Rama Naidoo stayed to see the street fill with whites who want to turn the clock back on apartheid.

“Apartheid is not only a law,” Naidoo said. “It’s in your heart.”

Researcher Vaun Cornell, in Pretoria, contributed to this report.

BIOGRAPHY: The black leader’s story will be published next month. E1