I think what's unfortunate about FW De Klerk's passing is that he not only never stood trial for his actions & the actions he authorised, but he also demonstrated several times over that he hadn't learned anything in the time that has passed since he served the apartheid regime.
We saw this in his belief that the democratic Government was right to shoulder the apartheid Government's debts, and his belief that Eskom was fully functioning prior to 1994 (which it was - when serving the minority, of course).
We saw it in his claim that his 'hands are clean' and 'conscience is clear' when BLF laid a charge against him - which is a refusal on his part to understand their position, or why he may need to be answerable to the people and held accountable in some way.
Similarly, he attributed our status as 'one of the most unequal societies in the world' to the failures of the 'past 25 years', without acknowledging in the least the role that apartheid played - and continues to play - in setting up that status quo.
If anything, he's continued to serve as a figure to whom white people can refer when refusing to amend our understanding, our subconscious subscription to white supremacy, and the excuses we bleat when called upon to be active citizens in making South Africa fit for ALL.
I have many thoughts, and not enough words, maybe, to express them clearly. In many ways, FW de Klerk was the personification of South Africa's fallshort in the promise of the delivery of freedom and opportunity to every human being who calls South Africa home.
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