The Crisis of South African Foreign Policy: Diplomacy, Leadership and the Role of the African National Congress

by Matthew Graham

Overview

The emergence of a 'new' democratic South Africa under Nelson Mandela was regarded as a high watermark for international ideals of human rights and democracy. Much was expected of the ANC in power, particularly that it would be able to translate its ideals into a coherent foreign policy for the African continent. Yet its foreign policy since 1994 has been mired in accusations of incoherence, contradiction and failure. Here, based on extensive archival research and interviews, Matthew Graham offers new ways of interpreting South Africa's foreign policy by investigating the continuities and discontinuities of the ANC's international relations - from exile to political power. Charting the political intrigues during the country's transition from apartheid, and the subsequent influences on Presidents Mandela and Mbeki, The Crisis of South African Foreign Policy makes a vital contribution to our understanding of why post-apartheid South Africa has failed to lead Africa on the world stage.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780857739483
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	09/28/2015
Series:	International Library of African Studies
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Matthew Graham is Lecturer in South African history at the University of Birmingham. He specializes in International Relations and South African foreign policy.
Matthew Graham is Lecturer in History at the University of Dundee, UK.

Table of Contents

Figures...................................................................................................................................... iv
Acronyms.................................................................................................................................. v
Acknowledgements................................................................................................................. viii
Chapter One
Introduction............................................................................................................................. 1
Chapter Two
The ANC in Exile, 1960-76..................................................................................................... 6
The 1960s............................................................................................................................ 9
The South Africa United Front and the Commonwealth, 1960-62.............................................................................. 11
Mandela's 1962 Tour of Africa................................................................................................................................... 14
The ZAPU Alliance and the Wankie Campaign........................................................................................................... 20
1969: A Year of Upheaval................................................................................................ 23
The Khartoum Conference........................................................................................................................................... 23
The Morogoro Conference.......................................................................................................................................... 24
The Lusaka Manifesto................................................................................................................................................. 28
The ANC's Expulsion from Tanzania......................................................................................................................... 31
The Early 1970s................................................................................................................ 32
The Dialogue Process.................................................................................................................................................. 33
The Internal and External Situation of the ANC in the Early 1970s............................................................................. 36
The Decolonization of Angola and Mozambique, 1974-6........................................................................................... 39
The Soweto Uprising, 1976......................................................................................................................................... 40
Conclusion........................................................................................................................ 42
Chapter Three
From Exile to Liberation, 1976-90....................................................................................... 45
The Late 1970s.................................................................................................................. 45
The ANC's Improved Position in Southern Africa..................................................................................................... 46
The 1980s.......................................................................................................................... 52
The ANC Escalates its 'Armed Propaganda'............................................................................................................... 54
South Africa's Destabilization of Southern Africa...................................................................................................... 57
The ANC's Precarious Position in Southern Africa.................................................................................................... 60
The Nkomati Accord................................................................................................................................................... 67
The Kabwe Conference, 1985..................................................................................................................................... 69
The End of Exile.......................................................................................................................................................... 71
The ANC, White South Africans, and the Prospect of Negotiations........................................................................... 72
The New York Accords, Namibian Independence and the Effect on the ANC........................................................... 75
Conclusion........................................................................................................................ 80
Chapter Four
ANC Foreign Policy during South Africa's Transition: the Search for Direction, 1990-94 83
The ANC and the New International Order: 1990-92....................................................... 87
Formalizing a Foreign Policy Perspective: 1993-4......................................................... 100
Conclusion...................................................................................................................... 109
Chapter Five
The Sub Council on Foreign Affairs (SCFA) of the Transitional Executive Council (TEC):
The Effects on the ANC's Post-apartheid South African Foreign Policy....................... 112
The Multiparty Negotiation Process and the Transitional Executive Council................. 114
The Formation and Significance of the Transitional Executive Council......................... 117
The Sub Council on Foreign Affairs............................................................................... 120
The Department of Foreign Affairs and its Influence Over the SCFA............................ 126
Conclusion...................................................................................................................... 140
Chapter Six
Idealism versus Realism? The Contested Nature of South African Foreign Policy, 1994-6 145
Foreign Policy After the Elections.................................................................................. 150
A 'Foreign Policy Perspective in a Democratic South Africa': The ANC's Sets Out its Post-election Vision 157
South Africa and the Nigerian Crisis.............................................................................. 162
The Emerging Inconsistencies in South African Foreign Policy..................................... 168
Conclusion...................................................................................................................... 178
Chapter Seven
The Changing Nature of South African Foreign Policy..................................................... 181
The DFA's Review of South African Foreign Policy....................................................... 183
Foreign Policy Formulation within the ANC and South Africa: a Democratic Process? 187
The ANC's Changing Perspectives on Foreign Policy.................................................... 192
The White Paper on South African Participation in International Peace Missions......... 198
South Africa's Foreign Policy Successes under Mandela............................................... 200
War and Peace in Southern Africa.................................................................................. 204
Conclusion...................................................................................................................... 211
Chapter Eight
A New President, a New Direction? Thabo Mbeki's Renaissance..................................... 214
Centralization and the Power of the Presidency.............................................................. 215
Mbeki's Vision................................................................................................................ 220
The Developing World Champion................................................................................... 224
Zimbabwe........................................................................................................................ 233
Conclusion...................................................................................................................... 241
Chapter Nine
Conclusions.......................................................................................................................... 244
The Legacies of Exile...................................................................................................... 247
The Effect of the Transition............................................................................................ 250
ANC Foreign Policy in Office......................................................................................... 252
Constraints and Contradictions....................................................................................... 254
'Punching Above its Weight'........................................................................................... 259
Notes ..................................................................................................................................... 262
Bibliography.......................................................................................................................... 324
Index.............................................................