Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 1, 1994 TAG: 9404010046
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA LENGTH: Medium
De Klerk's move was aimed at stemming violence in the province and ensuring that Natal residents could vote. But it could result in a bloody showdown with Zulu nationalist leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi and his warriors.
Buthelezi, who also heads the Zulu-dominated Inkatha Freedom Party, called the troop deployment an "invasion" of KwaZulu, the Zulus' self-governed homeland within Natal. He said the sight of South African soldiers would only stoke his followers' wrath.
Speaking on state television Thursday night, Buthelezi said further talks between him and the government on whether Inkatha would drop its boycott of the April 26-28 elections were unlikely.
Buthelezi said his party was "being coerced into the [electoral] process through the barrel of the gun." He questioned whether fair elections could be held under a state of emergency.
"What is being done is really comparable to someone holding a woman for someone to rape that woman. It amounts to that for us," he said.
Buthelezi and his nephew, Zulu King Goodwill Zwelethini, are demanding an independent kingdom and say they fear that an expected victory by their main rival, the ANC, will crush the rights of the 7 million Zulus.
Inkatha and the African National Congress have been engaged in a low-boil war, blamed for 11,000 deaths since 1990. In Natal, most violence has stemmed from clashes between Zulus who support Inkatha and other ethnic groups - including some Zulus - who support the ANC.
In the past three weeks, Inkatha supporters have disrupted attempts by the ANC and other parties to campaign in KwaZulu, and Buthelezi's KwaZulu police have been implicated by an independent judiciary commission in "hit-squad" attacks on the ANC.
Violence in Natal also has skyrocketed: The province of 6.5 million people had 290 political murders in March, the highest monthly total in three years.
Tensions deepened when a march by 8,000 armed Zulus through downtown Johannesburg on Monday left at least 53 people dead.
De Klerk, speaking from government offices in Pretoria, said his decision was based on the "total picture as it is today" and advice from military and intelligence sources. It came two days after Buthelezi and the king cold-shouldered his plea for an emergency meeting with him and Mandela.
Appealing for public calm, de Klerk stressed there was no political motive behind the crackdown and no plan to oust Buthelezi.
by CNB