S. Africa Given ANC Ultimatum : Apartheid: Guerrilla war could be resumed if all obstacles to negotiations are not removed, the delegates warn. Mandela’s dealings with the regime are criticized.

The African National Congress’ first consultative conference in 31 years concluded Sunday with a militant ultimatum to the government: remove all obstacles to negotiations by the end of April or the ANC will consider suspending talks and resuming its guerrilla war.

The hard-line ANC attitude was further reflected in the revelation that Deputy President Nelson Mandela and other ANC leaders had been sharply criticized during closed sessions of the three-day meeting for their conduct during talks with the government thus far.

Mandela himself mentioned the criticism in his closing address to the 1,600 delegates, many of whom are clearly uneasy talking to a government that, in their view, wants to maintain white domination of the black majority.

Mandela told delegates he welcomed the frank evaluation of the ANC leaders’ failings, but he also strongly defended his confidential discussions with the government, his reference to President Frederik W. de Klerk as “a man of integrity” and his contacts with leaders of the nominally independent black homelands.

However, Mandela added, the ANC’s ability to raise its complaints with the leadership had been a healthy step for the once-revolutionary movement, which has been legal in South Africa for only 10 months.

“We have emerged from this congress stronger than we were before,” Mandela said to loud applause.

For several months, militant ANC members have expressed private concern that the 72-year-old Mandela, the leader of talks with the government, has been unaware of the growing distrust of the Pretoria government among rank-and-file members.

Several resolutions passed by the conference over the weekend contained specific demands that the ANC’s 37-member national executive committee consult more closely with members nationwide. And the conference resolutions indicated a militancy that surprised many political analysts.

On Saturday, the ANC flatly rejected a proposal, advanced by the influential foreign affairs chief, Thabo Mbeki, that it draw up a plan for a phased removal of sanctions against Pretoria, even as worldwide sanctions are beginning to crumble. Mbeki said Sunday that the proposal is still being studied, however.

Although the ANC decided to proceed with “talks about talks” with the government, it expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s pace of reform and said the government must clear away several obstacles before formal constitutional negotiations can begin. The government has said it hopes to launch those negotiations early next year.

Among the obstacles cited by the ANC were the release of all political prisoners, the return of exiles, the repeal of repressive legislation and the end of political trials. The government agreed in August to begin granting amnesty for prisoners and exiles, but the process has been slowed by delays and administrative difficulties on both sides.

“It was the clear view of the conference that in order to get the negotiation process going, much, much more has to be done (by the government),” said Joe Slovo, a leading figure on the ANC executive. “Until those steps are taken, we don’t see a prospect of beginning proper negotiations.”

The ANC also decided to launch a campaign of protests, marches and other forms of mass action to pressure De Klerk to remove those obstacles and end black factional fighting, which has claimed more than 3,000 lives in South African townships this year. The ANC claims the township violence is being orchestrated by government agencies, including the security forces, in an attempt to undermine support for the ANC.

“Our patience with this regime is running out,” the conference said in its closing declaration. “The regime has its own agenda, that of retaining white domination in a new form. It is violating and distorting all its undertakings to the ANC and the people.”

The conference added that the ANC’s military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation), “must play a facilitative role in the defense of our people.”

“Our people are being butchered in their homes,” said Joe Modise, the Umkhonto we Sizwe commander. “And it is the legitimate right of the people to defend themselves.”

The ANC agreed in August to suspend its armed struggle against Pretoria, but the two sides have yet to agree on terms of dismantling of the ANC’s underground guerrilla forces.

In a rare public assessment of the ANC’s internal difficulties, Mandela admitted that the organization has been slow to establish links of communication between the leaders and its 300,000 members across the country. However, he added that “we are really now at the stage that we feel confident we are in physical contact with our people.”

Mandela also responded in detail to delegates’ criticisms of his handling of talks with the government. He said suggestions that the ANC halt all confidential discussions with the government “are totally unreasonable.”

“There would have been no . . . future prospect of negotiations if there were no confidential meetings between the ANC and the government,” he said. He added that having confidential talks “does not mean we are compromising our position.”

Mandela rejected a suggestion that ANC leaders take no actions without consulting the members, saying such a proposal could “only be made by people who have no idea of the problems that face the leadership on the ground.” And he cited half a dozen instances in which his personal calls to President De Klerk or Cabinet members had resolved urgent problems facing ANC members.

Mandela also responded to criticism that he was wrong to refer to De Klerk, as he often has, as “a man of integrity.”

“The strategies of our organization are not determined by the integrity or honesty of any particular individual,” Mandela said. “Our strategy is guided by the fact that De Klerk represents apartheid.”

Some delegates had criticized ANC leaders for inviting chiefs of the black homelands to join negotiations. Mandela defended that decision, saying that one of the ways of isolating the government was “to get at people upon whom they (the government) have relied for support of apartheid.”

And Mandela noted that many African countries have been racked by civil wars because the black governments refused to enter discussions with their enemies.

“I hope our (ANC) comrades would take account of such experiences and ensure such tragedies don’t befall us,” Mandela said.