28
May 2014 | Martin Williams |
Original Publication: The Citizen
With an abundance of material on Madiba available,
it’s handy to know whether any new book about the great man offers fresh
insights.
Tony Leon’s latest memoir, Opposite Mandela, does
so. Leon was perfectly positioned to have a unique perspective. Not only did he
become the leader of the opposition when Mandela was president, he was also MP
for Houghton, where Mandela moved shortly after his release in 1990. There are
other coincidences weaved into this engaging story. These include family links that connected the two to noteworthy events
and personalities.
With customary chutzpah, Leon capitalised on
Madiba’s presence in Houghton by delivering a chocolate cake and a hand-written
invitation to attend a DA constituency report-back meeting. Although Madiba
declined, he reci-procated, asking Leon “and one or two other DP chaps” around
for dinner. That’s where the young MP began to learn that his host had “an almost
preternatural talent for reaching out to, and charming, those outside the
circle of true believers”.
All Leon’s observations about Madiba are made
within the context of admiration and respect for “a leader born with a special
kind of grace, who seems to transcend the politics of his age”.
Yet Leon is not shy to point out flaws. For
example, he did not hold back when Mandela defended the actions of ANC members
who shot and killed IFP marchers in the 1994 Shell House massacre. When the
matter was raised in Parliament, Leon quoted a leaked memo showing police had
been unable to investigate, as they had been denied access to the building.
Mandela later said he had personally given ANC
guards the order “shoot to kill”. And he got away with it. “In this and many
other judgment lapses, as I viewed them, Mandela’s Teflon coating was
ultra-resilient.”
There’s also a chapter on how Leon dealt with
Mandela’s invitation to join the Cabinet. Harry Oppenheimer and Bobby Godsell
thought the DP should “give it a go”, but former party leaders Helen Suzman and
Frederik van Zyl Slabbert advised against it.
Leon sought advice from many quarters and pondered
long over the issue. With the benefit of hindsight, he says: “South Africa,
today, would be less likely to have been a robust, open democracy with
government held to account by an independent opposition had (Madiba’s) proposal
been realised.”
Leon offers insights into other key players. During
the protracted talks that preceded SA’s historic political settlement, his
initial antipathy to Joe Slovo “melted as I found his sharp and cynical humour
made us, across the divide of age and ideology, actually quite kindred
spirits”.
Indeed, at the Hyde Park book launch last week it
was pointed out that Leon was wearing red socks – a Slovo trademark. I’m not
sure what we were supposed to read into that.
Leon’s clashes with Madiba’s successor, Thabo
Mbeki, are legendary. However, in this volume he explains how “the Mbeki of
1994 was a much nicer person, far more approachable and accommodating”.
Throughout the book there are examples of warm,
personal exchanges between Leon and Mandela. In 2002, on the veranda of
Madiba’s Houghton home in front of a phalanx of reporters and photographers,
the elder statesman put his arm around the shoulder of the opposition leader,
declaring: “Tony Leon is a proper democrat and there should be dialogue at all
levels of our country.”
Another glimpse of what we are missing.
Opposite Mandela by Tony Leon is published by
Jonathan Ball. (Paperback, 243 pages, R210).
No comments:
Post a Comment