The Apartheid Divide

PUNC XI: EYE OF THE STORM

2018

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Table of Contents

Letter from the Crisis Director Page 2

Letter from the Chair Page 4

Committee History Page 6

Delegate Positions Page 8

Committee Structure Page 11

Letter From the Crisis Director

Hello, and welcome to The Apartheid Divide! My name is

Allison Brown and I will be your Crisis Director for this committee. I am a sophomore majoring in Biomedical

Engineering with a focus in Biochemicals. This is my second time being a Crisis Director, and my fourth time staffing a conference.

I have been participating in Model United Nations conferences since high school and have continued doing so ever since I arrived at Penn State. Participating in the Penn State International Affairs and Debate Association has helped to shape my college experience. Even though I am an engineering major, I am passionate about current events, politics, and international relations. This club has allowed me to keep up with my passion, while also keeping with my other passion; biology. I really enjoy being a Crisis Director and I am so excited to do it again!

This committee is going to focus on a very serious topic from our world’s past;

Apartheid. The members of the Presidents Council during this time were quite the collection of people. It is important during the course of this conference that you remember to be respectful to other delegates (both in and out of character) and to be thoughtful before making decisions or speeches. If you ever feel uncomfortable, please inform myself or the chair, Sneha, and we will address the issue. While this is a serious and sometimes uncomfortable topic, it has a lot of potential for debate and deliberation. My hope is that over the course of this weekend, the committee can solve or make steps toward solving this issue. I am looking forward to seeing the creativity and thoughtfulness of the delegates’ ideas - that is always my favorite part of

2 conferences.

I am looking forward to this committee and I am excited to see what you all come up with! Please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have about the conference, the committee, or even Penn State!

Sincerely,

Allison Brown

[email protected]

Letter From the Chair

Honorable Delegates,

My name is Sneha Anmalsetty and I am delighted to act as your chair as you debate and deliberate Apartheid. Having been involved with Model United Nations since my freshman year of high school, I am always curious to see how delegates can alter history. I believe you will find, just as your real life counterparts did some decades years ago, the issue at hand to be far more complicated than it appears, rift with centuries of ethnic, cultural, and political tension. It will require a strong understanding of social politics and the role of the government in enacting change throughout a state. It is your responsibility to work cohesively with your committee members to create a prosperous future for South Africa, in whatever form that may be.

Other than being your chair, however, I am also a freshman in the College of Engineering at Penn State, pursuing a major in biomedical engineering with a hopeful minor in economics,

Spanish, or health policy administration on the pre-medicine track. Along with being a member of PSIADA, I also participate in Club Taekwondo as a black belt. I contribute to the Penn State literary magazine, Kalliope, and participate in the Undergraduate Research Society. On the weekends, you’ll often find me sipping on matcha bubble tea or curled up in my blankets watching political crime dramas and comedy sitcoms.

I am looking forward to meeting you all in March and interested to see how you respond to the challenges that South Africa will face throughout the conference. Feel free to reach out with any questions you may have about Penn State or PUNC. Welcome to Happy Valley!

All my best, Sneha Anmalsetty [email protected]

Committee History

The President’s Council, convened in 1989, was composed of 60 members. 20 from the

House of Assembly, 10 from the House of Representatives, 5 from the House of Delegates, and

25 appointed by the State/State President. This caused the breakdown to effectively be, 20 white,

10 coloured, and 5 indian delegates, with 25 others being directly nominated. This council was convened in order to resolve disputes between the three Houses regarding general affairs and legislation. This council, along with the electoral college, made it incredibly difficult for the white vote to be outnumbered. The National Party had much of the power in their hands, and

Botha, a prominent member of the National Party, served as the country’s prime minister since

1977. It was not until 1994 that South Africa adopted the first non-racial constitution, and Nelson

Mandela was appointed as the President.

There were many important parties at this time in South Africa’s history. In the House of

Assembly, there were three major parties; the National Party, the Conservative Party, and the

Democratic Party. In the House of Delegates, the Colored Labour Party was important. In the

House of Representatives, the Solidarity Party was important. The other members nominated by the President were also of the National Party.

The Conservative Party of South Africa was a right-wing party that sought to preserve the last vestiges that remained of apartheid. They were the official opposition in the whites-only

House of Assembly, but declined quickly after the demise of apartheid and were merged with the

Freedom Front in 2004. The general election of 1989 was the last non-racial election, and the

Conservative Party took a significant percentage of the white vote in South Africa. They led the

“No” vote when the de Klerk and the National and Democratic Parties were seeking to end apartheid.

The Democratic Party was the name of the political party that is now known as the

Democratic Alliance. The Democratic Party was officially convened in 1989, but was previously known under other names during apartheid; it was previously the opposition to the ruling

National Party. They were part of the campaign to end apartheid; the “Yes” Vote.

The National Party was the ruling party of South Africa from 1924 to WWII and from

1948 to 1994. When the party returned to power they implemented new racial segregation laws -

Apartheid. The National Party also sought to establish a republic and preserve Afrikaner cultures. From this party, came the Conservative Party. The Conservatives were formed because of members who were unhappy with how the National Party had begun dismantling apartheid during the 1980s. In 1989, P. W. Botha resigned as National Party leader and as State President.

He was then replaced by the much more liberal F. W. de Klerk.

The Labour Party was founded in 1969, and was opposed to apartheid. They participated in the Coloured Persons Representative Council, which was a legislative body with very limited powers, that was used to give coloured South Africans some power during apartheid. It was dissolved in 1980, and turned into the House of Representatives in 1984.

Delegate Positions House of Assembly (4 positions) ● National Party (2 positions) ● Pik Botha - Botha, a prominent member of the National Party, has served as the country’s foreign minister since 1977 under former leaders P. W. Botha and B. J. Voster.has spent much of his career defending apartheid against foreign criticism. Botha tried to run for leader of the NP in 1978, but ultimately withdrew his candidacy over concerns about his liberal stances and his perceived youth. He once again lost in his bid for the leadership of the NP in 1989 Botha recently signed a peace protocol with the President of the Republic of the Congo, and said at the signing that “[his] government is removing racial discrimination. We want to be accepted by our African brothers". His nickname Pik is short for pikkewyn (Afrikaans for penguin) due to his likeness to a penguin’s stance, especially when wearing a suit ● Barend du Plessis - Du Plesis serves as the minister of finance in the new de Klerk cabinet, a position he carries over from the previous Botha administration. Du Plesis inherited a complex situation with the dropping price of gold and a severe drought that struck during the Botha era. He was also tasked with restructuring South African international credit so that foreign banks could still extend short-term credit to South Afric. Du Plesis also contested for the leadership of the National Party, but was defeated in the final round by de Klerk. Du Plesis was also at the signing of the Peace Protocol alongside Pik Botha. ● Conservative Party (1 position) ● Andries Treurnicht - Treurnicht was one of the initial 22 members that quit the National Party in 1982 to form the Conservative Party (CP). He was an opponent of P. W. Botha and the the National Party’s reforms to apartheid. Under him the CP was a strong advocate for self-determination, as opposed to the rise of power-sharing policies with Coloureds and Blacks. In June 1989 Treurnicht and several other CP officials travelled to London and other European capitals to gain support for the party’s goals. Under Treurnicht, the CP was able to unseat the Progressive Party as the formal opposition party.

● Democratic Party (1 position) ● Zach de Beer - Following the loss of its status as the formal opposition party in 1987, De Beer took over the leadership of the Progressive Federal Party (PFP). With the support of Ambassador to London Dennis Worrall, and independent Wynand Malan to form the Democratic Party (DP). The surging DP claimed 34 seats in parliament, and some credit their presence for the shift in policy by de Klerk’s National party towards a power-sharing approach to government (an idea originally supported by the defunct PFP).

House of Delegates (1 position) ● Colored Labour Party (1 position) ● Rev. Allan Hendrickse - Hendrickse was one of the founders of the Labour Party, a major proponent for the rights of Coloured people throughout South Africa. Hendrickse and the Labour Party dominated the House of Representatives, with Hendrickse even serving on Botha’s cabinet. This drew outrage from the African National Congress about his willingness to work so closely with the people behind apartheid. Hendrickse eventually resigned from Botha’s cabinet after various clashes took place between the two men. Hendrickse led an act of public defiance when he broke the law by swimming at a white-only beach in 1987. His Labor party held onto its control over the House of Representatives in the 1989 election.

House of Representatives (1 position) ● Solidarity Parity ● J. N. Reddy - Reddy is a prominent Durban businessman of Indian origin. His goals are to help the Indian population of South Africa grow and prosper in a similar manner to the progress made by the Afrikaner community over the past 50 years. Reddy serves as the leader for the Solidarity party that formed a coalition to take control of the House of Delegates in the election of 1989. The Solidarity Party’s working majority marked yet another change in the leadership of the House of Delegates, and continues the trend of instability within the body.

Nominated by President (5 positions) ● National Party ● Kobie Coetsee - Coetsee serves as the Minister of Justice on the new de Klerk, but served in the same position since the beginning of the Botha administration in 1980. Coetsee has been a legal pioneer, introducing the idea of the small claims court to South Africa, and spearheading the Matrimonial Property Act of 1984. The Act had an important effect on the status of married women because it allowed for property sharing between spouses. Coetsee has also engaged a series of talks with the imprisoned Nelson Mandela since 1985. ● Magnus Malan - General Malan serves as the Minister of Defence in the de Klerk cabinet, yet another hold over from the Botha Administration. Malan served as the Chief of the South African Army, and later as the Chief of the South African Defense Force. It was while in this role that Malan grew close to then Defence Minister and later Prime Minister P.W. Botha. Malan has gained a reputation for not being afraid of quashing political defense with violence. Malan also oversees the newly formed Civil Cooperation Bureau. ● George Bartlett - Bartlett currently serves as the Minister for Public Works under de Klerk. In his previous role as Minister for Mineral and Energy Affairs he often faced calls for his resignation over the frequent petrol price hikes. Bartlett’s goal is to make sure that food supply is sufficient for both domestic use and exports, as well as making sure to increase the number of black people involved in agricultural and other public works projects. ● Gerrit Viljoen - Viljoen serves as the Minister for Constitutional Development in the newly elected de Klerk administration. Viljoen previously served as the Minister for Education under P.W. Botha. Under de Klerk’s vision for a new South Africa, Viljoen is tasked with investing new models for Constitutions for the country moving forward. There have been some allegations of corruption regarding his past role as the Minister for Education, but Viljoen has vehemently denied the claims. ● Adriaan Vlok - Vlok serves as the Minister of Law and Order in the de Klerk cabinet, a post he first took on in 1985 under P.W. Botha. Vlok first started his career in the Justice Department and later served as the private secretary to Prime

Minister B.J. Vorster. Under Vlok, the Ministry of Law and Order was responsible for the suppression and detention of 30,000 people. Vlok also oversaw the restriction of 17 anti-apartheid organizations as the Minister of Law and Order in 1988. ● Jac Rabie - Rabie is an important figure in the current Labour Party. The party once featured its leader Rev. Hendrickse as a member on P.W. Botha’s cabinet, but lost out on their influential position due to Hendrickse’s dismissal from the cabinet, following his controversial protest by swimming on a whites’ only beach. Rabie and others have been calling for a better relationship with the National Party, but only time will tell which faction of the party ends up coming out on top. Infighting has damaged the public perception of the party, but they still look in position to maintain order in the House of Representatives when they gained 69 out of the 80 seats up for grabs in the House.

Committee Structure

All of the delegates in the President's council each represent a member of parliament in all 3 of the race based houses and the composition of the council is proportional to the number of seats that each party holds in Parliament. Since the members of the council represent the interests of the various parties, the committee will allow the council to act as the legislative body of the government. Crisis will act as President de Klerk, and will enact any legislation that they find in the nation's best interest. President de Klerk campaigned on the idea of ending apartheid and hopes that the council can come together in helping him to achieve his goals.