LETTER: Don’t be fooled by Ramaphosa’s public rhetoric
John Vorster had charm and humour and seemed quite human after the implacable coldness of Verwoerd
In reading Peter Bruce’s column advocating a vote for President Cyril Ramaphosa I could not help but compare another situation, when John Vorster succeeded Hendrik Verwoerd in 1966. Like Ramaphosa, Vorster had stood by and endorsed another of the most destructive periods of our history, the apartheid years. Despite his deep anti-English sentiment and his uncompromising, rigorous enforcement of apartheid as police minister, after the implacable coldness of Verwoerd he seemed — even to Helen Suzman — to be quite human. Vorster had both charm and humour, and even played golf. His promises and ideas for change even impressed a coterie of high-level English business leaders enough for them to publicly endorse his vague reform initiatives — if “allowing” Maoris to tour with the New Zealand rugby team and “allowing” black diplomats to live in white areas could be termed visionary moves. After the years of despair and economic damage under Verwoerd, Vorster seemed to hold out the hope of ...
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