Pik Botha

Roelof Frederik Botha MP
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office April 1977 – 1994
Prime Minister	B.J. Vorster (Prime Minister 1966-78) P. W. Botha (Prime Minister 1978-84) *(State President 1984-89) *(The 1983 Act of Constitution, changed Prime Minister to State President, becoming effective at 1984 SA election.) Frederik W. de Klerk (State President 1989-93)
Minister of Mineral and Energy Affairs
In office 27 April 1994 – May 1996
President	Nelson Mandela
Deputy Leader of the National Party in Transvaal
In office 1987–1996
Member of Parliament
In office 22 April 1970 – 1974
Constituency	Wonderboom
In office 1977–1994
Constituency	Westdene
Personal details
Born	27 April 1932 (age 79) Rustenburg, Transvaal Province, Union of South Africa
Nationality	South African
Political party	National party ANC
Spouse(s)	Helena Susanna Bosman Ina Joubert m. 27 April 1998
Children	2 sons, 2 daughters
Alma mater	University of Pretoria
Occupation	Diplomat and politician
Profession	Law
Religion	Dutch Reformed

Roelof Frederik "Pik" Botha (born April 27, 1932, in Rustenburg, Transvaal) is a former South African politician who served as the country's foreign minister in the last years of the apartheid era. He was considered to be a liberal - at least in comparison to others in the ruling National Party and among the Afrikaner community.

He is not related to late contemporary National Party politician P. W. Botha, under whom he served as South Africa's foreign minister.

Botha was nicknamed 'Pik' (short for 'pikkewyn', Afrikaans for 'penguin') due to a perceived likeness to a penguin in his stance. This was accentuated when he wore a suit.^[1] He is the father of the rock musician Piet Botha. His grandson is Roelof Botha, former CFO of PayPal.

Diplomat and lawyer

Botha began his career in the South African foreign service in 1953, serving in Sweden and West Germany. From 1963 to 1966, he served on the team representing South Africa at the International Court of Justice in The Hague in the matter of Ethiopia and Liberia v. South Africa, over the South African occupation of South-West Africa (Namibia).

In 1966, Botha was appointed law adviser at the South African Department of Foreign Affairs. In that capacity, he served on the delegation representing South Africa at the United Nations from 1966 to 1974. At this time, he was appointed South Africa's ambassador to the United Nations, but a month after he presented his credentials, South Africa was suspended from membership of the General Assembly. It remained a member of the UN, however, retained a legation throughout these years. Consequently, its flag continued to be flown every day until succeeded by the new flag in 1994, as a reflection of its continued membership of the organisation, if not of the General Assembly.

Politician

In 1970, Botha was elected to the House of Assembly as MP for Wonderboom in the Transvaal, leaving it in 1974. In 1975, Botha was appointed South Africa's Ambassador to the United States, in addition to his UN post. In 1977, he re-entered Parliament as MP for Westdene, and was appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs by premier B. J. Vorster.

Botha entered the contest to be leader of the National Party and Prime Minister of South Africa in 1978. He was allegedly considered Vorster's favorite and received superior public support among whites (We want Pik!) but withdrew after criticism concerning his young age, lack of experience (having spent 16 months as foreign minister) and alleged liberal beliefs as opposed to the ultra-conservative NP machinery (in which Pik botha lacked a significant position), instead giving support for P. W. Botha, who was ultimately elected.^[2]

In 1985, Pik Botha drafted a speech that would have announced the release of Nelson Mandela, but this draft was rejected by P. W. Botha.^{[citation needed]}

The next year, he stated publicly (during a press conference in Parliament, asked by German journalist Thomas Knemeyer) that it would be possible for South Africa to be ruled by a black president provided that there were guarantees for minority rights. President P.W. Botha quickly forced foreign minister Botha to acknowledge that this position did not reflect government policy.

In December 1988 Pik Botha flew to Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, with Defence Minister Magnus Malan, and signed a peace protocol with Denis Sassou-Nguesso, President of the Republic of the Congo, and with Angolan and Cuban signatories. At the signing he said "A new era has begun in South Africa. My government is removing racial discrimination. We want to be accepted by our African brothers".

Namibian independence

On December 22, 1988, Pik Botha signed the tripartite agreement involving Angola, Cuba and South Africa at United Nations headquarters in New York City which led to the implementation of Security Council Resolution 435, and to South Africa's relinquishing control of Namibia after decades of defiance.

On December 21, 1988 Pik Botha, with a 22-strong South African delegation from Johannesburg, was initially booked to travel to the Namibian independence ratification ceremony in New York on Pan Am Flight 103 via London to New York. Instead, the booking was cancelled as he and six delegates took an earlier flight, thereby avoiding the fatal PA 103 crash at Lockerbie, Scotland.

National unity

Botha subsequently served as Minister of Mineral and Energy Affairs in South Africa's first post-apartheid government from 1994 to 1996 under President Nelson Mandela.

Botha became deputy leader of the National Party in the Transvaal from 1987 to 1996. He retired from politics in 1996 when F. W. de Klerk withdrew the National Party from the government of national unity.

In 2000, Botha declared his support for President Thabo Mbeki and joined the African National Congress. Though he remains an ANC member, Botha has more recently expressed criticism for the government's affirmative action policies saying that the then South African government would never have reached a constitutional settlement with the ANC in 1994 had it insisted on its current affirmative action programme.^[3]

References

External links

• Pik Botha on Facebook
• South African History Online
• South African Who's Who

Political offices
Preceded by Hilgard Muller	Minister of Foreign Affairs 1977–1994	Succeeded by Alfred Nzo