APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA: Nelson Mandela & The Redemption of David Cameron

Mandela on my mind.

In 1985, South Africa was red-hot and violence in the black townships was escalating in defiance of the apartheid system then under the regime of PW Botha. In Britain, the ruling  Conservative Party was sympathetic to the apartheid state on the lame "grounds" of it being a check on "Soviet backed radicals" it's label for the ANC and related groups. The Conservative party had a young fiery David Cameron who was a top member of the Federation of Conservative students. As common with students, this group pursued Party ideals to the extreme and became notorious for printing "Hang Mandela" posters and wearing similar badges on their clothes.

Federation of Conservative Students 1985 Poster
(Courtesy: P. Thomson)

By 1989 Cameron had risen in the ranks and was working for the Tory Policy Unit at it's Central Office. By that time Pressure was mounting for economic sanctions to be imposed on South Africa in addition to the cultural and sporting boycotts. Cameron was sent on an anti-apartheid fact finding mission to SA with a pro-apartheid lobby firm  Strategy Network International (SNI sponsored by Botha himself.

However in 2006, on invitation by the Honorable Nelson Mandela, Cameron visited SA and a week after his return to the UK, he denounced Thatcher's policy towards apartheid in a dramatic shift from his Party's general silence on its dark role in the matter. Cameron described Mandela as "one of the greatest men alive". The UK newspaper, Observer in it's edition dated September 10th 2006 quoted Cameron as follows -

'The mistakes my party made in the past with respect to relations with the ANC and sanctions on South Africa make it all the more important to listen now.

'The fact that there is so much to celebrate in the new South Africa is not in spite of Mandela and the ANC, it is because of them - and we Conservatives should say so clearly today.' 

Though one could be suspicious of his motives for the "volte face" especially as he may have needed something to put his party back in the reckoning ahead of a coming battle with former Prime Minister Gordon Brown at the general elections. Hmm.

Whether Mandela overwhelmed him with sheer strength of character and gentility or just shrewd political survival instinct at play, Cameron's career and ultimate story will definitely be a lot better for it.

The teacher and his convert