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Oliver Tambo
F. W. de Klerk is the prime minister of South Africa who releases Mandela from prison. He has a complicated relationship with Mandela, with the two of them winning the Nobel Peace Prize jointly, and Mandela sometimes tentatively praising him. Ultimately, however, de Klerk does not want to fundamentally dismantle apartheid, and partly as a result of this, he loses to Mandela in South Africa’s first free democratic election.
F. W. de Klerk Quotes in Long Walk to Freedom
The Long Walk to Freedom quotes below are all either spoken by F. W. de Klerk or refer to F. W. de Klerk. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 99
Quotes
De Klerk again excused himself and left the room. After ten minutes he returned with a compromise: yes, I could be released at Victor Verster, but, no, the release could not be postponed. The government had already informed the foreign press that I was to be set free tomorrow and felt they could not renege on that statement. I felt I could not argue with that. In the end, we agreed on the compromise, and Mr. de Klerk poured a tumbler of whisky for each of us to drink in celebration. I raised the glass in a toast, but only pretended to drink; such spirits are too strong for me.
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Chapter 104
Quotes
Despite his seemingly progressive actions, Mr. de Klerk was by no means the great emancipator. He was a gradualist, a careful pragmatist. He did not make any of his reforms with the intention of putting himself out of power. He made them for precisely the opposite reason: to ensure power for the Afrikaner in a new dispensation. He was not yet prepared to negotiate the end of white rule.
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F. W. de Klerk Quotes in Long Walk to Freedom
The Long Walk to Freedom quotes below are all either spoken by F. W. de Klerk or refer to F. W. de Klerk. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 99
Quotes
De Klerk again excused himself and left the room. After ten minutes he returned with a compromise: yes, I could be released at Victor Verster, but, no, the release could not be postponed. The government had already informed the foreign press that I was to be set free tomorrow and felt they could not renege on that statement. I felt I could not argue with that. In the end, we agreed on the compromise, and Mr. de Klerk poured a tumbler of whisky for each of us to drink in celebration. I raised the glass in a toast, but only pretended to drink; such spirits are too strong for me.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 104
Quotes
Despite his seemingly progressive actions, Mr. de Klerk was by no means the great emancipator. He was a gradualist, a careful pragmatist. He did not make any of his reforms with the intention of putting himself out of power. He made them for precisely the opposite reason: to ensure power for the Afrikaner in a new dispensation. He was not yet prepared to negotiate the end of white rule.
