The Afrikaner boy-next-door who joined the black struggle

Press, 26 July 1989, Page 16

The Afrikaner boy-next-door who joined the black struggle

John Matisonn, of the “Observer,” talks to the

young man who heads S.A.’s most-wanted list

Hein GROSSKOPF, aged 25, the blonde, blue-eyed scion of a prominent Afrikaner family who is now at the top of South Africa’s most wanted list, with a $20,000 price on his head, describes himself as a member of the African National Congress, and a soldier in its army, Mkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation). The South African Minister of Law and Order, Mr Afriaan Vlok, has accused Mr Grosskopf of responsibility for two bombings outside magistrate courts in Johannesburg and Krugersdorp in which both police and civilians were among the dead and wounded. Mr Grosskopf believes the Government is focusing on him is because of his “boy next door” image. His father, Johann, is the former editor of the Johannesbury pro-Government daily, “Beeld," and is now professor of journalism at the University of Stellenbosch. An uncle is a judge and his grandfather was an early Afrikaner poet. Mr Grosskopf will not comment on his role in any specific action, including the bombings, but in his first interview with a

Western reporter, he told the “Observer” that he accepts that Pretoria will try to use him in its propaganda war. “I joined the movement with open eyes. I identify with the armed struggle, with the actions of the soldiers of Mkhonto we Sizwe, with the need of the people to hit back, and I accept the possibility and the responsibility for the loss of life of any of us, including the enemy and innocent bystanders, as a sad but inevitable part of war.” Mr Grosskopf was introduced to the public for the first time at a conference with white South Africans in Lusaka. “Sure people were surprised, because here is the man who is plastered all over the police stations at home. People were taken aback. Some where shocked. But they know I’m a member of the A.N.C. “But sometimes I feel if I had done enough to deserve the notoriety I have, that would be satisfying.” Mr Grosskopf grew up in a

middle-class Afrikaans household. In his final year of high school, he was a member of the Johannesburg junior city council. Mr Grosskopf believes that the Government was anxious to discredit him as a role model for Afrikaner youth, precisely because other Afrikaners might identify with him as a prominent young Afrikaner. Mr Grosskopf decided before he left school that he would not serve in the South African Defence Force. But a medical exemption put off the decision about whether he would flee the country. The turning point, however, came in 1985. A State of Emergency was declared, and the then Minister of Law and Order, Mr Louis le Grange (now the Speaker in the House of Assembly), announced the body count. It averaged six deaths a day, but it was announced that the police were indemnified against prosecution for those shootings.

“Many of my friends who had done basic military training and were eligible for call-up in time of need wanted to send their uniform back. My first reaction was emotional, that these people (the Government) have to be removed, physically. I thought about my decision for three months, until January 1986.1 was convinced the only way was to participate in physically throwing them out.” Mr Grosskopf went to Botswana and announced to the authorities that he wanted to join the A.N.C. He was deported to Lusaka, where the A.N.C. has its headquarters, and taken to meet the A.N.C. He says he was-well-received, and his life there is rich and rewarding. He admits that leaving family and friends was difficult. “But it is a decision I regret only in sofar as it was necessary for me to do so. Obviously I want to go home. That’s why I am here. It was not the right decision; it was the only decision. I would do it

again.” He says his physical comfort is taken care of, and the A.N.C. have organised a variety of cultural events that have opened new worlds to him. “At the moment I don’t have the time or inclination to think too much about the future. I think it’s dangerous to daydream. It interferes with things. Being a soldier is not the healthiest of jobs.” The A.N.C.’s best known soldier was granted a medical exemption from the South African army because of a cardiac condition. But before he was declared medically unfit for service, a brigadier asked Mr Grosskopf for a promise that he would not follow in the footsteps of another medically unfit youth who later became a Springbok sprinter. That had embarrassed those who declared him unfit. “He made me make a solemn promise that I would never become a Springbok sprinter,” Mr Grosskopf recalls. “I kept that promise.” Copyright — London Observer Service