South Africa pays national tribute to former President Frederik de Klerk
Former South African President, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Frederik De Klerk in Libreville, Gabon, June 14, 2013. AFP PHOTO / Steve Jordan
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
A month after his death, the country paid an official tribute to the last apartheid president on Sunday, December 12.
Frederik de Klerk had not had a national funeral.
He died on November 11 from cancer at the age of 85.
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With our correspondent in Johannesburg,
Romain Chanson
A controversial figure, Frédérik de Klerk, South African head of state from 1989 to 1994, was both an actor in the segregationist apartheid regime and the architect of its dismantling.
However, the excesses feared by the authorities did not take place.
It is a peaceful ceremony which took place in Cape Town, in the presence of President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The national anthem was played in the Groote Kerk church in Cape Town.
As the South African Constitution celebrates its 25th anniversary, the master of ceremonies, Mondli Gungubele, recalled the role played by Frederik de Klerk in its realization: “
We can have an opinion on the past but we must be the captains. of our future.
And our future is rooted in the birth certificate represented by our Constitution, which was made possible through the efforts of M. de Klerk.
"
"I implore you to release him"
Also present, President Cyril Ramaphosa did not hesitate to recall the crimes committed by the apartheid regime in which Frederik de Klerk fully participated.
A funeral oration, all in balance, was thus concluded with a message of appeasement: "
Whether we agree with him or not,
President Cyril Ramaphosa asked,
I implore you to release him, so that 'he may rest in peace.
"
“
Let de Klerk burn in hell for the slaughter of our people,
” tweeted MP Omphile Maotwe, from the Fighters for Economic Freedom party.
Like the second opposition party, many South Africans refuse to grant Frederik de Klerk any pardon.
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To read also:
South Africa: the private funeral and without media of Frederik de Klerk
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