By Emmanuel Nduka
South Africa’s last white President, FW de Klerk, has died at the age of 85, his Foundation announced on Thursday.
“It is with the deepest sadness that the FW de Klerk Foundation must announce that former President FW de Klerk died peacefully at his home in Fresnaye earlier this morning following his struggle again,” the statement by the Foundation said.
The former President was the leader under the apartheid regime and a key actor in the country’s transition to democracy.
As South Africa’s last Head of State from the era of white-minority rule, he and his government dismantled the apartheid system and introduced universal suffrage. Ideologically an economic liberal, he led the National Party from 1989 to 1997.
De Klerk was widely regarded as a politically conservative figure in South Africa. At the same time, he was flexible rather than dogmatic in his approach to political issues. He often hedged his bets and sought to accommodate divergent perspectives, favouring compromise over confrontation.
