Mandela, Inkatha Leader Will Meet for Talks

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa —  Black leaders Nelson Mandela and Mangosuthu Buthelezi will meet Jan. 29 for the first face-to-face talks in decades between the longtime friends turned political rivals, their parties said Thursday.

The announcement raised the prospect that there might eventually be a settlement between their two warring groups. But spokesmen for both sides cautioned against unrealistic expectations.

“It’s one thing for leaders to meet and shake hands, another to transfer the reconciliation down to grass-roots level,” ANC spokesman Saki Macozoma told a local radio station.

Mandela and Buthelezi have previously called without avail for an end to the violence.

Mandela’s African National Congress and Buthelezi’s Zulu-dominated Inkatha Freedom Party have waged virtual warfare for five years in eastern Natal Province, killing 5,000 people.

Fighting spread to Johannesburg-area black townships in August, causing another 1,000 deaths and prompting calls from government officials, other opposition parties and newspapers for a meeting between the ANC and Inkatha leaders.

Mandela and Buthelezi have been friends since the 1940s and exchanged warm letters during Mandela’s 27 years in prison for plotting to overthrow the white-led government.

But they have not met since Mandela was arrested in 1962. Mandela, since his release in February, had repeatedly refused to meet with Buthelezi.

The two opposition groups differ on tactics and plans for a future South Africa.