Wise Compromise in South Africa : Now rival leaders must accept ‘national unity’

South Africa is again moving toward democracy. After months of stalemate, President Frederik W. de Klerk and his National Party and Nelson Mandela and his African National Congress are compromising on a “national unity government” that would allow whites to retain a foothold for the first five years of the nascent multiracial government that is certain to be dominated by the black majority.

The ANC pragmatically accepted a power-sharing arrangement that would guarantee the National Party, the major voice of the privileged white minority, a limited role in an interim government. That limited role for the current government may be the only way to speed up the transition to full democracy for all South Africans. This compromise replaces the ANC’s justifiable demands for immediate majority rule to replace the current system, which withholds voting rights and most privileges of government from the black majority.

De Klerk shrewdly yielded on his insistence on a 10-year power-sharing arrangement that included white veto power over blacks. And, in a move more symbolic than ground-breaking, he integrated his Cabinet with an Indian and two mixed-raced ministers from the less powerful Colored and Indian chambers of Parliament. But still no blacks are allowed in Parliament.

As the momentum picks up, the ANC is also easing support for economic sanctions. Although President Bush lifted federal sanctions in 1991 after the first hints of change, many state and local governments--including California and Los Angeles--continue to impose sanctions, which prevent the awarding of contracts to firms that do business in South Africa. The ANC now urges the lifting of those punishing restrictions as soon as black and white negotiators agree on a date for elections, rather than after the transfer of power.

The ANC retreat is pragmatic because of severe black unemployment and daunting inequities in housing, education and health care. The needs are urgent, but most international firms and the all-important World Bank refuse to invest before a political consensus has been reached.

To achieve that consensus, De Klerk and Mandela must sell this compromise to their white and black rivals, particularly Mangosuthu Gatsha Buthelezi, the head of the Zulu-based Inkatha Freedom Party, who has been an obstructionist during the negotiations. All parties must return to the negotiating table; although the ANC and the National Party have agreed to an interim government, the other parties must also agree. All South Africans must give ground to help forge a permanent democracy.