S.A. Govt accused of dragging feet on reform

Press, 5 August 1981, Page 9

S.A. Govt accused of dragging feet on reform

Cape Town rhe South African Opposition leader, Frederick van Slabbert, accused the Government of marking time on racial reforms during a bitter opening debate to a nve-day censure debate in Parliament.

In a tough reply the Prime Minister (Mr Pieter Botha) said: “The official Opposition stands for a policy of abdication for white South Africa. Dr Slabbert leader of the Progressive Federal Party, told the all-white Parliament that the General Election last April had contributed nothing to solving the nation's problems. “We are still marking time,” he said, adding that the possibility of peaceful development depended on what happened in Parliament in the next 18 months.

Mr Botha was immediately on his feet after the Opposition attack — a rare occurrence .in Parliament where there is usually at least a two-day interval before the Prime Minister replies to an Opposition censure motion.

The motion accuses the National Party Government of hesitant leadership, failing to fight soaring living costs, failing to carry out promises to remove race discrimination, and putting party interests above those of the country. It also says the Government has responded only 'with repression to increasing social, economic, and political pressure. Mr Botha, in a fighting speech, retorted that it was Dr Slabbert who had displayed lack of leadership or credibility, otherwise their jobs would be reversed. He said he was determined to carry out the mandate for peaceful change given to him in the General Election, when the ruling National Party won 131 of the 165 elected seats. The P.F.P. secured 26. He accused Dr Slabbert of favouring a unitary State and one-man, one-vote system on the lines of Zimbabwe after the end of the guerrilla war there.

Mr Botha also again rejected the idea of a national

convention of all races to thrash out South Africa's problems. “This would be impractical, dangerous, and a waste of time and money, and would only lead to chaos,” he said.

He did not mention previously announced plans for legislation to ease “pass law’s.” that restrict black travel around the country, or a proposal to ease discrimination in public places such as hotels and restaurants.

The Prime Minister said he hoped that the 60-member advisory President’s Council would come . forward with constitutional proposals by

November or December this year. ■ ; .<■ The council was set up last year with white, Coloured (mixed race), and Asian re-, presentatives, but excluded blacks because, the Government said, they already had self-government in their homelands. Mr Botha said that he opposed an equal voting role for whites, Coloureds, and Asians, but declined to go into details about what sort of parliamentary' structure he envisaged, pending the proposals of the President’s. Council. . But he repeated earlier statements that any radical proposals would have to-be put to National Party provincial congresses and that he would use a referendum if necessary on the issue. Mr Vause Raw, leader bf the minority Opposition National Republican Party, summed up three hours of exchanges between Dr Slabbert and the Prime Minister by saying, “South Africa is just as much in the dark as it ever was after hearing the same old generalisations.” .