F.W. de Klerk was the last president of apartheid South Africa. He went from Mandela's jailer to his subordinate and together they changed history. Rossier explores the fascinating political journey and legacy of this complicated figure.
F.W. de Klerk was the last President of apartheid-era South Africa. In less than 4 years he went from being Mandela's jailor to his vice president. Together they changed history for the better and may have prevented a civil war, yet little is known about de Klerk. Through his probing lens, Rossier explores the fascinating political journey and legacy of this complicated figure.
De Klerk served as president of South Africa from 1989 to 1994. In 1990, he released leading anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela who spent 27 years in prison. His freedom followed the repeal of all major apartheid laws including the lifting of the ANC ban. Initially a supporter of the apartheid state, he is widely credited for orchestrating the end of South Africa's racial segregation policy and leading the country's transformation into a multi-racial democracy alongside Mandela. There has been much speculation over the years as to the role played by this intriguing figure but a definitive portrait has yet to be drawn. Is it fair to think of de Klerk as a South African Fujimori or Kissinger? What is de Klerks real legacy? What pushed this man, a once virulent defender of white Africans and their privilege to start the process of making South Africa a more equal and just nation? From the political minefield of his time in government during apartheid, to his complicated relationship with Mandela, the film explores the man who was reviled by some and praised by many, yet has somehow remained in the shadow of his exploits.
The story of de Klerk is also the story of South Africa. Its oppressive history and stunning transformation continue to inform its social and political identities in very real and tangible ways and its effects can be felt on an international scale. Featuring in-depth, exclusive interviews with de Klerk himself, Thabo Mbeki (former president of S.A.), Roelf Meyer, Leon Wessels (former minister of the De Klerk cabinet), Albie Sachs (anti-apartheid activist and former judge on the Constitutional Court of South Africa), Mathews Phosa (former ANC Treasurer General and former anti-apartheid activist), Yasmin Sooka (former commissioner of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission), Richard Goldstone (headed the Goldstone Commission investigations into political violence in S.A.), and many others who played a vital role in pre- and post-apartheid South Africa.
