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The Passing Away of the “Big Crocodile”, Microsoft Word format
The Passing Away of the “Big Crocodile”, Rich Text format

South Africa’s former State President, P.W. Botha, died on October 31, 2006, at the age of 90. He passed away peacefully at his home in the Western Cape province.

The South Africa of today is a very, very different place from the one which P.W. governed in the 1980s. It has become the Communist state which he fought so hard to prevent. He governed South Africa through some of its most turbulent years, through the last decade of white rule, when international pressure escalated as never before, and under the circumstances he did an excellent job. This country was at war with the African National Congress terrorist organisation of Nelson Mandela, and Botha was determined not to unleash the Communist bear on the country. For his stance he was betrayed, and essentially removed from office by an internal coup within his own National Party, which saw him retire from politics as the reformist F.W. de Klerk came to power and “negotiated” the surrender of SA into the hands of its enemies. He was vilified by the world during his life, and this will continue now that he is dead. But SA under his strong leadership was a better place, and, unlike his gloating enemies but in company with conservative South Africans, we mourn his passing.

Who was P.W. Botha?

His nickname of “P.W.” stood for Pieter Willem. Later in life he also came to be known as “die Groot Krokodil” in Afrikaans, meaning “the Big Crocodile.” He was born on January 12, 1916. He was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for the town of George in the landslide that brought the National Party (NP) to power in 1948. He was appointed Deputy Minister of the Interior in 1958, and later became SA’s Minister of Defence. And it was in this capacity in particular that he will be well remembered, for under him, SA’s defence force was built up to an even greater strength than it had been before. It was, beyond all doubt, the most powerful military force in Africa, and arguably the fifth best in the world. No mean achievement, given SA’s international isolation. And to a large extent this was the achievement of P.W. Botha.

In 1978 he became Prime Minister, and he remained so for six years. During this time he began to dismantle much of the “apartheid” legislation. He brought in a new constitutional dispensation with him becoming State President, and which enfranchised South African Indians and Coloureds in their own parliaments. Botha was slowly making changes to the country’s political landscape. He was prepared to dismantle the “apartheid” laws, but one thing he was not prepared to do - unban the ANC and the SA Communist Party. In this he was absolutely correct. These two terrorist organisations, so closely intertwined, had been banned many years before, and rightly so. Botha refused to unban them. Imagine what a different place SA would be today, if they had never been unbanned! In 1985 he said, “I am not prepared to lead white South Africans and other minority groups on a road to abdication and suicide.” Botha would not unleash the Communist terrorists onto the people of this land. And for this he paid the price:

In a rebellion in his own cabinet in 1989, carried out by men who wanted to cave in to the pressure and unban the terrorist organisations, and start “negotiations” with them, P.W. Botha was toppled. F.W. de Klerk became president - a man who unbanned the ANC, released terrorists from prison (including Nelson Mandela), and began the process that culminated, five years later, in the massively rigged elections that brought the ANC to power.

When the ANC established the farcical “Truth Commission”, under the leadership of the “Red bishop”, Desmond Tutu, P.W. Botha was summoned to appear before it; but he refused to do so, calling it a “circus.” That’s exactly what it was. Far from being a neutral, unbiased commission, it was an inquisition, a witchhunt designed to exonerate the Communist terrorists now in power and to demonise the previous white government, the security forces which protected the country so well against terrorism, and whites in general. In its final report, predictably, the “Tutu Commission” blamed P.W. for much of the horrors of the last decade of white rule. In doing this, it deliberately took the eyes of the world off the true perpetrators of those horrors - the predominantly black Marxist terrorists of the African National Congress, the SA Communist Party, the Pan Africanist Congress, etc. South Africa was at war! A war for its very survival. And under P.W. Botha, the State security forces fought back with all their considerable might, as indeed was their duty to do, to defend all the citizens - white and black - of this country. The horrors of the last decade of white rule were the horrors committed by the wicked, Red, murdering terrorists of the ANC and other such organisations. They were “necklacing” innocent people, they were using terror, intimidation, violence, sabotage, etc., against whites, and against moderate anti-Communist blacks. The State had every right to squash this threat with all the might at its disposal. And it did. And what a great job it did! There was in fact no possible way for the ANC to ever come to power in SA by defeating the security forces. It could not be done. They were just too powerful - thanks in great measure to P.W. Botha’s leadership. The only way for the ANC to take power was for sell-outs within the National Party to enter into “negotiations” with the ANC and surrender the country piecemeal into their hands, and then finally to hold a massively-rigged election.

Some months ago, P.W. agreed to give two interviews, one in English and one in Afrikaans, for the first time in a decade, at the age of 90. The plan was to use the interviews on national television, given their historical value. The interviews were duly recorded, but all the TV stations in South Africa found “excuses” not to screen them! It must be understood that the State broadcasting corporation is now the propaganda voice of the ANC - and P.W. had made comments during the interviews that would be embarrassing to the ANC leadership. He spoke forthrightly and clearly, and pulled no punches. The producers refused to be subject to this kind of censorship, and decided to make DVD and video copies available directly to the public. It is well worth obtaining a copy.

I repeat here what I wrote in my article, Snippets from South Africa: June 2006:

“Having seen it, I am not at all surprised that the SABC refused to screen it! It shows P.W. at 90 years of age is as sharp as ever. And he does not hesitate to condemn the disaster of ANC rule, and to call a spade a spade. He mentions the part played by the United States in helping to bring about SA’s downfall. He calls the terrorists just that - terrorists. Not “freedom fighters” as the ANC would want us all to believe. He mentions that Nelson Mandela, at his trial, made it clear that he was a Communist. He rejects the stupid notion of SA being a ‘rainbow nation’.

“Watching it brought back nostalgic memories of another South Africa, one that disappeared not that long ago, but which, for those of us living here, seems a lifetime ago now: of a happier, better, safer South Africa; of a South Africa governed by men of integrity and principle, men who governed the country, not as their own personal fiefdom (unlike our present rulers), but for the general well-being of the country as a whole.”

The interview is highly recommended. It can be purchased from: www.pwbotha.com

When P.W. passed away, the ANC was very quick to attempt to gain the moral high ground, by sending condolences to his family. “The ANC wishes [P.W.'s] family strength and comfort at this difficult time,” it said. Not only that, but President Thabo Mbeki instructed that the South African flag would fly at half-mast at all government buildings until the evening of the day of the funeral, after an offer by the ANC of a state funeral for P.W. was declined by his family! It would indeed be extremely foolish to be taken in by these hypocritical expressions of sorrow and respect! The offer of a state funeral was made by Frank Chikane, the director-general in the presidency. At one time Chikane, a Pentecostal minister and ANC-supporting political activist who played a major role in whipping up the support of the liberal “churches” for the ANC via the preaching of “liberation theology” (religious Communism), had been a target of the security forces. Now riding the wave of power under an ANC government, he, like a true politician, was looking to score points by visiting P.W.’s family and making the offer of a state funeral.

P.W.’s widow, Barbara, said that her husband did not want a state funeral. “He was not a man who looked for honour and glory,” she said. Doubtless, P.W. would not have wanted a state funeral under an ANC government anyway! To be supposedly honoured in his death by the very Communists he fought so hard to keep out of power - it is unimaginable to think that he would want that.

Tributes, condolences and reminiscences naturally started to flow, as always happens at the death of a public figure. Nelson Mandela, who was in jail when P.W. was in power, said that his death should serve as a reminder of SA’s “horribly divided past”, but it should also serve to remind South Africans of how citizens of all persuasions ultimately came together to “save” the country from “destruction”. What a load of nonsense! But typical Mandela-speak. The country was not in any sense “saved from destruction” when the ANC came to power - quite the opposite. Under P.W., and despite international sanctions and internal terrorism, SA was prospering. Today, under the ANC’s misrule, it is falling apart. It is being destroyed.

Mandela also said, “While to many Mr Botha will remain a symbol of apartheid, we also remember him for the steps he took to pave the way towards the eventual peacefully negotiated settlement in our country.” What peacefully negotiated settlement? Tens of thousands of people died as a result, not of the State security forces trying to maintain law and order, but of the ANC’s terrorism! The “negotiations” took place against a backdrop of constant ANC violence and intimidation and terrorism.

When Mandela was still in prison, P.W. offered to release him if he would renounce violence. In 1988 he said, “As soon as he [Mandela] renounces violence and undertakes not to start violence in South Africa, government will release him.” This was a mistake on P.W.’s part. He should not even have made the offer. Mandela was in prison for life and there he should have stayed. But as it turned out, Mandela was not prepared to renounce violence as a way of achieving his goals, and so P.W. did not release him. It was only under F.W. de Klerk that Mandela was released. And it was all downhill from there.

President Thabo Mbeki expressed “heartfelt condolences” to the Botha family. He said, “Mr Botha took over the reins of government at a difficult time in the history of our country.” Indeed he did - and the “difficult time” he had in running the country was precisely because the ANC, and Mbeki himself, had called for the country to be made ungovernable! Again let it be said: P.W. Botha did an amazing job of defending SA against its enemies. The world was against him, yet he did it.

Mbeki went on: “It stands to his credit that when he realised the futility of fighting against what was right and inevitable, he, in his own way, realised that South Africans had no alternative but to reach out to one another.” P.W. did not think it was futile to fight against SA’s enemies! He was all for continuing with the fight! Nor was the ANC’s cause right, and nor was the result - an ANC victory - inevitable. It only became inevitable when P.W. was removed and F.W. de Klerk took over.

It is often said that history is written by the victors. The ANC are now the victors, and they are re-writing the history of this country; and what was wrong has now been declared “right”. Children are learning at school that Nelson Mandela was SA’s greatest hero, that the ANC was morally superior to the white government, and that the ANC was a force for “good”, warring against the “evil apartheid regime.” All lies. But this is how it’s told now.

Even F.W. de Klerk admitted, in his reminiscence, that it was P.W. Botha who presided over the repeal of almost 100 discriminatory laws in SA, and that he was keenly aware of the need for reform. He then said, “I should like to honour P.W. Botha for the enormous contribution that he made to preparing the way to the new South Africa.” This from the man who saw to it that Botha was removed from power! He added, “I did not like his overbearing leadership style.” De Klerk may not have liked it, but that “overbearing leadership style” served the country far better than de Klerk’s weak, lily-livered, appeasement-orientated leadership style ever did.

It was disgusting to read the comments of the leader of the African Christian Democratic Party, Kenneth Meshoe. This party claims to be a party for “evangelicals”, but it is far from that. He paid tribute to Botha for putting in motion the negotiations that led to the “death of apartheid” and for putting in place the structures that would allow events in SA to unfold to where they are today. Yet this man and his party claim to be against Communism, and against the direction the ANC has taken the country!

Here’s the disgusting part: “While it is unfortunate that he passed on before he could emulate the example of leaders such as F.W. de Klerk and Adriaan Vlok who apologised for the pain and suffering that apartheid policies caused to millions of South Africans, the ACDP will nevertheless remember him for his vision to have a constitutional reform that would include millions of black people who were oppressed in the land of their birth.” To which we say: we rejoice that he did not emulate F.W. de Klerk or Adriaan Vlok! Vlok, as we reported in a recent previous article, washed the feet of Frank Chikane in a grovelling gesture that bore no resemblance to what the Lord Jesus Christ did when He washed the feet of His disciples. The fact that Kenneth Meshoe thinks this action of Vlok’s was a good thing, says much about his own lack of understanding of the Gospel of Christ and what true repentance and forgiveness is all about. He, like so many others, goes on about the “suffering” caused by “apartheid”, but the policy of apartheid ended many years ago now and in any case was never, ever as bad as the policies of the ANC both before and after it came to power - policies which have, and are, causing intense suffering to millions of South Africans now.

Was he a true Christian? I have seen nothing to indicate that he was. He was a religious man, a man who attended the services of his church, but this does not mean he was a true Christian. Perhaps, in his old age, he did indeed call out to the Lord for salvation; but I do not know. This is what I wrote in Snippets from South Africa: June 2006: “P.W., like many conservative whites in SA, is a Protestant, though this is by no means the same as saying he is a truly converted man. But even so, he is of a generation which, because of the Protestantism in which it was steeped, was a more moral, decent generation.” And also: “At the launch [of the DVD interviews], P.W. spoke of visiting the Second World War graves of South African soldiers in Europe, and of the supposed tomb of Christ in Jerusalem - ‘the One who stood up and secured life for us.’ He said: ‘Our beloved country, you are a country of the future as long as we believe in the Man who conquered the grave.’ Indeed, this is the only hope for SA’s millions: turning from sin to the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. Christians should pray for P.W. Botha, that in his old age he would truly seek the Lord, and be converted, if he is not already.”

Many things will now be said about P.W. Botha. And given the world we live in, most of them will be negative. But for those not blinded by Red and almost-Red propaganda, he will be remembered as a brave and principled man who led South Africa through its darkest days. Was he a great man? Let me repeat here what I wrote in The Truly Greatest Africans of All Time:

“Although it would make liberals, Reds, and their fellow-travellers livid with rage, former South African State President P.W. Botha deserves to be included [among those who were great in a worldly sense], at least among the greatest South Africans. For he was eminent in point of attainments and achievement, and exhibited signal excellence in an important work. Under his leadership, South Africa made great strides in dismantling the apartheid legislation - but Botha was adamant that Communist terrorist organisations such as the ANC, SA Communist Party and others should not be unbanned. ‘Die Groot Krokodil’ (Afrikaans for ‘the Big Crocodile’), as he was known to friend and foe alike, took a bold, giant leap; but he would not go further and hand SA over to Marxist murderers. In this he was perfectly right, he had the best interests of SA’s citizens at heart. But for this he was betrayed by members of his own party.”

Yes, P.W. Botha was a great South African. He made mistakes, certainly. He did not always act wisely. Doubtless there was more he could have done while Prime Minister and State President. That is always the case, with all men in high office. He was a fallible man, not a perfect one. But he understood Communism, and he understood what an ANC victory would mean for South Africa. He was mocked in his lifetime, jeered, ridiculed for his comments about the Communist “total onslaught” against South Africa. But history has proved him right! What he warned about has come to pass.

We mourn his passing. He had his faults, and we cannot condone everything he did. But when all is said and done, he loved South Africa passionately, and wanted to protect it. And truly, for that as well as for much else, we say without hesitation that South Africa has lost a great man.

November 2006

Shaun Willcock is a minister of the Gospel, and lives in South Africa. He runs Bible Based Ministries. For other articles (which may be downloaded and printed), as well as details about his books, tapes, pamphlets, etc., please visit the Bible Based Ministries website, or write to the address below. If you would like to be on Bible Based Ministries’ electronic mailing list, to receive all future articles, please send your details.

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