Dear At,
My contribution to this conversation is a small one, but I think important
in adding richness to the picture of the Rest of the World's contribution
to change in apartheid South Africa which you so eloquently paint. I
would not like to forget that much of the action taken by TROW was
inspired by Liberation movements and their struggle for a free South
Africa. Now, I am not that naive as to believe that foreign governments'
acted purely out of a sense of righteousness or were completely won over
by the arguments of the Liberation movements. Think only of the
reluctance of the USA and the UK to impose meaningful sanctions.
I would also like to remember the courage of many people inside South
Africa who recognised the contribution of international pressure while at
the same time understanding the hurt it would bring to their daily lives.
Perhaps they could not foresee the extent of the hurt, but given
conditions of the day, the deprivation was just one more step towards
liberation. Internal (inside South Africa)support for liberation movement
policy was indeed very broad and much deeper than originally given credit
for.
And looking at the contribution of TROW to reconstruction - yes, what is
given in foreign aid is a pittance compared with what is needed and aid to
other areas of the world, but it does help. As you are aware, the flow of
foreign aid has remained robust, but is now channelled directly through
government agencies - a step I am not in favour of, but that is another
issue. What would help enormously is direct foreign investment in South
Africa, but then we must also be mindful of profit repatriation,
technology and wage and environmental policies.
Having said all this, I still agree with you that the cycle of hurt has
grown extremely vicious, and must be changed. I left South Africa again
recently after a short (2 year) return, precisely because of the "hurting
society" and the threat it posed to my family. With caring, thinking
individuals like yourself still "at home", I believe the country has a
chance of truly liberating itself.
Still learning,
Les
-- Leslie Lax Kelowna BCe-mail: leslax@cnx.net web: http://members.cnx.net/leslax
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>