Tutu turns scorn on Mbeki in row shaking black South Africa

Scotsman.com ^ | November 30, 2004 | FRED BRIDGLAND FRED BRIDGLAND

[kupia_kummi]

ARCHBISHOP Desmond Tutu yesterday fired the latest salvo in a bitter row with South African president Thabo Mbeki that is threatening to divide the country’s black leadership.

The public slanging-match between the two leaders began last week when Mr Tutu accused the president of deepening the country’s poverty and stifling debate among his party.

Mr Mbeki, who led the ANC to a 70 per cent victory in elections in April, hit back, charging the Nobel Peace laureate with speaking out of turn and resorting to "empty rhetoric".

Yesterday, Mr Tutu responded with a sarcasm that will do nothing to defuse the row. "Thank you Mr President for telling me I am a liar with scant regard for the truth and a charlatan posing as a champion of the poor, the hungry, oppressed and voiceless," he said.

Mr Tutu, second only to Nelson Mandela as the face of the struggle for black emancipation from apartheid, added: "I will continue to pray for you and your government by name daily, as I have done and as I did even for the apartheid government. God bless you."

Mr Tutu is becoming as formidable a thorn in the side of Mr Mbeki’s African National Congress government as he was of former white governments.

He has criticised the notoriously thin-skinned Mr Mbeki for his silence on AIDS, which has infected 5.6 million South Africans; his cosy relationship with Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe; the creation of a narrow, super-rich black oligarchy; the stifling of debate; and his prejudices against the whites.

[Selous]

Well, you know, you try your best but sometimes.........

(Chuckle)

[Cronos]

Quite correct cyborg -- Forget about what is there now -- the point is that Apartheid was wrong. IT was evil. Do you guys agree with that?

I don't think anyone is denying that Mugabe is a jerk, a racist and a guy who's running his country into the ground and probably Mbeki is too (don't know enough), but that does NOT make the Apartheid govt ok. Would you say that E. Germany was a hell hole under communism, so was NAziism ok? sheesh.

[Cronos]

I remember when South Africa and Rhodesia were thriving and civilized.

Strange, I don't remember S.A. being civilised. I do remember S.A. having second class citizens.

[Ironfocus]

Agreed, apartheid had to go, it was no good for South Africa.

[rabidralph]

He's already due for one, after breaking that Heisman Trophy.

[cyborg]

You are forgiven. Two pints of draught for your penance!

[cyborg]

The exit from the system was poorly executed. Too many outside cook spoons in the soup IMHO.

[cyborg]

My ex left South Africa before apartheid ended because he could not get a job after he graduated. Things were going down in hill in South Africa way before apartheid ended all because of certain aspects of the government's policies. Of course they didn't want apartheid to end because they were the chief beneficies of the goodies. Having black South Africans learn afrikaans instead of english despite the fact that english was becoming the world's language was one. In fact, I would advise EVERYONE to read Mark Mathabane to get a poor black person's perspective on apartheid era South Africa.

[Lancey Howard]

I do remember S.A. having second class citizens.

And now the place is strictly third world (except for a handful of political elite).

[Cronos]

And now the place is strictly third world (except for a handful of political elite).

it was ALWAYS a third world country, only then, the majority of it's population (the blacks) had no chance of improving their lot

[nwrep]

And you consider the treatment of blacks in Apartheid S.A. to NOT be evil? Sheesh. I'm not defendign what they're doing now -- but I AM attacking the notion that Apartheid was ok

No one said Apartheid was great, but that some people in South Africa today may look back on it with a different attitude. Sure, you had discrimination and a second class citizenry, but atleast the life spans were longer and they weren't being killed off by criminals or AIDS.