Iraqis in South Africa
So I'm rushing around South Africa with 10 Iraqis. We flew in from Dubai on Sunday night and in 5 days are going Joburg > Cape Town > Joburg > Durban > Cape Town > Joburg! We met today with Archbishop Desmond Tutu who still has the humility and childlike humour I remember from back in 1994 when I heard him talk at St.Aldates Church in Oxford, although he is visibly frailer. We're meeting with President Mbeki tomorrow but unfortunately Mandela is off on holiday so we won't be seeing him.
The purpose of the delegation is to share some of South Africa's experiences as an extremely diverse state (with 11 official languages!) which has sucessfully transitioned from represive minority rule. Given that I was still a kid and not politically engaged when Apartheid ended it's been a revelation learning just how risky the transition was and that the country only just avoided a civil war that could have been as bloody as Iraq's (Even so, as I heard today from Dave Stewart, De Klerk's Chief of Staff in the early 90s, 22,000 people were killed in the decade running up to Mandela's election). Learning about South Africa's journey may give the Iraqis some hope along with ideas and inspiration to work for reconciliation. At the same time most of the people we've met have admitted the differences, South Africa for example was able to transition on its own timescale without interference from foreign troops and neighbouring countries, a luxury Iraq has been denied.
The purpose of the delegation is to share some of South Africa's experiences as an extremely diverse state (with 11 official languages!) which has sucessfully transitioned from represive minority rule. Given that I was still a kid and not politically engaged when Apartheid ended it's been a revelation learning just how risky the transition was and that the country only just avoided a civil war that could have been as bloody as Iraq's (Even so, as I heard today from Dave Stewart, De Klerk's Chief of Staff in the early 90s, 22,000 people were killed in the decade running up to Mandela's election). Learning about South Africa's journey may give the Iraqis some hope along with ideas and inspiration to work for reconciliation. At the same time most of the people we've met have admitted the differences, South Africa for example was able to transition on its own timescale without interference from foreign troops and neighbouring countries, a luxury Iraq has been denied.
Here's an interview with Fink Haysom (my boss, to my right on the photo) about the delegation. And here's another.
2 comments:
Learn from South Africa's success by all means, but beware her failings. The country is thoroughly F***** up in many ways. To rather horrific extents in some cases. Very close friends of mine have had to leave recently, and return to the UK. Not sure SA is the best role model, just a thought.
Justin, I'm a South African with close links to members of our TRC. I am currently working in Iraq and have said all along what Iraq needs is a person larger than a human, such as a Mandela, to bring this country together and unite it under a common theme of "we are all Iraqis". Many white South Africans feel vindicated after losing power, I wish them well in the UK.
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