Common roots tying them to Africa with an emotional bond make it possible for the ANC and the Afrikanerbond to work together, and for members of the New National Party to join the ANC, President Thabo Mbeki said on Friday.
Writing in the African National Congress’ online publication, ANC Today, Mbeki said the decision to dissolve the New National Party and the meeting between the ANC and the Afrikanerbond, constituted historically important strides forward, towards breaking with a past that divided the country into two warring and implacably opposed factions, one white and the other black.
In the past, the Dutch Reformed Church (NGK) was described as the National Party in prayer. As with the National Party, its leaders were also members of the secret Broederbond.
”Thus have three central pillars of Afrikanerdom transformed themselves to give expression to the noble vision contained in the Freedom Charter and our National Constitution, that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in their diversity,” he said.
The dissolution of the NNP was a logical outcome of a historic and extraordinary process that sought to give expression to the affirmation made by the NGK at its tenth General Synod in 1998, that all South Africans, black and white, ”are created in the image of God”.
”It is because they share common African roots and are tied to our country by an emotional bond that it is possible for the ANC and the Afrikanerbond to work together, and for members of the NNP to join the ANC.
”The patriots who met at the Federal Congress of the NNP and at Luthuli House are determined that we will never again experience an April month like the April of 1952 [the 300th anniversary of Jan van Riebeeck’s arrival at the Cape].
”During this and all the April months that are yet to come, all our people will come together to celebrate freedom for all, in a country they will build together into a winning nation,” Mbeki said. – Sapa