Ivor Powell
Nosizwe Madlala-Routledge, the newly appointed deputy minister of defence, is no militaristic hawk or securocrat. She’s a self-professed pacifist – and a practising member of the Society of Friends or Quaker movement.
She is married to Jeremy Routledge, the director of the Quaker Peace Centre in Cape Town. In the 1980s the centre was integrally involved in the End Conscription Campaign aligned with the Mass Democratic Movement – a campaign in which Madlala-Routledge was involved.
Today the Quakers are active in the Coalition for Defence Alternatives, a grouping that has lobbied vigorously against weapons procurement by the government.
“We may well find ourselves on different sides of the fence,” Routledge admits. “But that will put us in a position where we can explore the issues involved. It won’t necessarily be a bad thing.
“Quakers are not like the Jehovah’s Witnesses who don’t recognise civil society at all,” he notes. “We respect the individual conscience.”
The couple was not given time beforehand to discuss the effect the appointment could have on their relationship or consciences. Madlala-Routledge was offered the job and given 30 minutes to respond.
“We engage with issues as they arise,” Routledge says, confident that the appointment will not negatively affect his marriage or position at the peace centre.
Madlala-Routledge confirms that she would describe herself as a pacifist. “But I take a realist view,” she adds. “Peace is a passion for me, but I do live in the real world, and I don’t believe that peace can be achieved while there is still injustice.”
She also points out that the role of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is changing.
“The important thing is working towards a redefinition of the role of the SANDF,” she says. “I was campaigning in KwaZulu-Natal over the elections and I watched as the SANDF secured the peace. Their presence created a sense of confidence in the people.”
She emphasises that South Africa could play a role in an African peacekeeping force mooted under the auspices of the United Nations and the Organisation of African Unity.
With South Africa already more or less unchallenged militarily on the subcontinent, working out the intricacies of putting together an African peacekeeping force is expected to be the major task facing the defence ministry in the coming years.
The ministry will probably be downgraded in importance. Like his deputy, the new minister, former United Democratic Front leader Patrick “Terror” Lekota, has no history in the military structures of the African National Congress.