Frederik De Klerk

President Nelson Mandela described his white deputy, Frederik W. de Klerk, as "a joke" Saturday in a clash over legal indemnity for actions during South Africa's conflict over apartheid. De Klerk, referring to charges of murdering women and children brought against former Defense Minister Gen. Magnus Malan this month, told a party congress in Pretoria that, if Malan was to be charged, then the present black defense minister, Joe Modise, should also be investigated.

President Nelson Mandela described his white deputy, Frederik W. de Klerk, as "a joke" Saturday in a clash over legal indemnity for actions during South Africa's conflict over apartheid. De Klerk, referring to charges of murdering women and children brought against former Defense Minister Gen. Magnus Malan this month, told a party congress in Pretoria that, if Malan was to be charged, then the present black defense minister, Joe Modise, should also be investigated.

Right-wing whites, including some of his former friends, call him "Red Fred," and worse. Black opposition leaders question his sincerity, even his integrity. But, through it all, Frederik Willem de Klerk manages to keep South Africa afloat and headed for constitutional negotiations with single-minded confidence and optimism. "I don't lie awake at night," De Klerk says, smiling. "You know, there's a saying, 'Cowboys don't cry.'

The sky is cloudless and the summer sun is scorching. Thousands of blacks have packed a soccer stadium in Maokeng, a dusty sprawl of matchbox homes and tin-roofed shanties. Beside the field, a crowd is squashed inside a chain-link fence, and crying children are passed back over a sea of heads to safety. Other people hang on trees and fences, or cling to lampposts.

The sky is cloudless and the summer sun is scorching. Thousands of blacks have packed a soccer stadium in Maokeng, a dusty sprawl of matchbox homes and tin-roofed shanties. Beside the field, a crowd is squashed inside a chain-link fence, and crying children are passed back over a sea of heads to safety. Other people hang on trees and fences, or cling to lampposts.

The beaches of South Africa were thrown open to all races today, in time for blacks to enjoy the summer holiday in areas where they could not go under apartheid laws. President Frederik W. de Klerk also said he will soon desegregate other recreational facilities. Over the last three years, segregation on the beaches has been gradually lifted, but two beaches in Cape Town, five in Durban and many in other resorts remained reserved for South Africa's white minority.

More than five years ago, as a newly arrived correspondent, I learned an important lesson from the courageous people of this little township. And now, as I leave, their example gives me hope for South Africa. Oukasie had existed for half a century to tend the rose bushes, work the factory lines, clean the clothes and mind the children for whites in Brits, half a mile away. Trouble was, the whites had suddenly decided that Oukasie was getting too close.

British Prime Minister John Major has called for the lifting of sports sanctions against South Africa in response to South African President Frederik de Klerk's program to abolish apartheid.

Negotiators agreed Tuesday on a draft law that would give blacks a role in running the country for the first time. The bill would set up an all-races transitional council even before multiracial elections in April. The law, requiring parliamentary approval, would require President Frederik W. de Klerk to consult on any major matters.

South African President Frederik W. de Klerk will visit Maputo on Friday for talks with President Joaquim Chissano, the Mozambican AIM news agency announced Wednesday. De Klerk met Chissano in Maputo last July before he became South Africa's state president.

Right-wing whites, including some of his former friends, call him "Red Fred," and worse. Black opposition leaders question his sincerity, even his integrity. But, through it all, Frederik Willem de Klerk manages to keep South Africa afloat and headed for constitutional negotiations with single-minded confidence and optimism. "I don't lie awake at night," De Klerk says, smiling. "You know, there's a saying, 'Cowboys don't cry.'

The beaches of South Africa were thrown open to all races today, in time for blacks to enjoy the summer holiday in areas where they could not go under apartheid laws. President Frederik W. de Klerk also said he will soon desegregate other recreational facilities. Over the last three years, segregation on the beaches has been gradually lifted, but two beaches in Cape Town, five in Durban and many in other resorts remained reserved for South Africa's white minority.

President Pieter W. Botha formally resumed the presidency today after recovering from a stroke he suffered nearly two months ago, but refused to address a leadership struggle with ruling party leader Frederik de Klerk. Botha's return brought little fanfare. There was no mention of it on the evening news of the state-run South African Broadcasting Corp., and his entrance into a joint session of Parliament with the rest of the Cabinet provoked only scant attention and no applause.

Thank goodness for bald men, for we are the peacemakers! Three bald statesmen easily come to mind for their peace initiatives in recent times: the late Anwar Sadat of Egypt, Mikhail Gorbachev of the Soviet Union, and now Frederik de Klerk of South Africa. I am sure other baldies can be added to this list, but not many of us can be counted among the aggressors and tyrants to which the peoples of the world have been subject. What is it about shiny-headed men that leads them to offer peace initiatives and liberating opportunities?