Sanctions Against South

The symbolic meeting between African National Congress leader Nelson Mandela and Inkatha leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi in a hotel in Durban was a promise for the future of South Africa. Nothing less, and nothing more. The promise is to halt the factional fighting between their groups, which is also ethnic conflict between Xhosa and Zulu peoples that claimed 5,000 lives in five years. Without fulfillment, the black empowerment being negotiated with the white government of President F. W. De Klerk will come to nothing but bloodshed.

SOWETO, South Africa -- Members of the African National Congress voted yesterday to reject the lifting of economic sanctions against South Africa, one day after their leader asked them to re-evaluate the group's position in light of changes taking place in the country.Meeting at a landmark national convention, ANC members passed a resolution appealing to foreign countries and international organizations to "postpone any consideration of the issues of sanctions against apartheid South Africa" until they talk with anti-apartheid groups inside the country.

SOWETO, South Africa -- The African National Congress, which has vigorously promoted international sanctions against South Africa, should reassess its stand in light of changes taking place in the country, the organization's president said yesterday..Speaking at the ANC's first national conference inside South Africa in 30 years, Oliver Tambo gave the first clear signal that the anti-apartheid group might be preparing to back off its insistence that sanctions must be maintained to keep pressure on the government to reform.

President Bush met with South African President F.W. de Klerk for about two hours Monday.It was a historic occasion, since it marked the first such meeting between an American president and a South African head of state in the White House in over 40 years.Whatever Bush heard during those two hours must have been awfully compelling, for he rushed from the meeting in an apparent frenzy and announced that apartheid had started down an "irreversible" path to extinction."I think all Americans recognize that President de Klerk is courageously trying to change things.