S. Africa Blacks, Whites Trade Accusations as Talks Resume

Nearly a year after their talks collapsed in acrimony, black and white leaders Thursday restarted negotiations on the future of South Africa but found themselves trading accusations on political violence and unable even to agree on a name for their new forum.

South Africans hope this new round of constitutional talks will lead to multiracial democratic elections by early next year. But negotiators in Thursday’s opening session postponed decisions on most of the tough issues and could agree only on the format for talks and on a resolution denouncing violence.

Negotiators played down the squabbling and the lack of a major breakthrough. But the session reflected the difficult road that lies ahead for the 26 diverse political groups, including the white-minority government and the African National Congress.

Originally scheduled for two days, the session ended after only one when negotiators deferred decisions on the forum name, on the causes of violence and on whether to accept agreements reached during last year’s negotiations. Those matters will be debated in closed-door committee sessions and reintroduced when talks resume April 19.

“We have achieved what we wanted to at this stage,” said Roelf Meyer, the government’s chief negotiator. But he warned that the issue of violence must be settled before talks resume.

A long list of names for the new round of talks, ranging from “CONESA--the Convention for Negotiating a Democratic South Africa” to “NEGOSA--Negotiations for South Africa,” was suggested.

The debate over a name, which last year was CODESA--the Convention for a Democratic South Africa, is important to several parties, including the left-wing Pan-Africanist Congress and the right-wing white Conservative Party. Those groups refused to participate in last year’s talks and had agreed to participate in this new round only if the name and format were changed.

With the new parties now seated at the horseshoe-shaped table, the new forum also will have to decide what to do about the agreements reached during the talks last year. Both the ANC and the government want negotiators to adopt those agreements, which call for a transitional council to oversee the campaign and democratic elections for a constituent assembly to draw up a new constitution.

But the Conservatives, among other parties, are strongly opposed.