NNP strikes a blow against democracy

Summary - The final absorption of the once-mighty National Party (reduced to 1,65 per cent in the recent election) into the ANC may seem a trivial event, but it is significant for what it reveals about our democracy and political history. NNP leader Marthinus van Schalkwyk justified his expedience by arguing that his party would now ‘help build South Africa’ rather than ‘criticising from the sidelines’. In other words, multi-party democracy is futile and principled opposition is a sideshow. So much for Nepad’s mission to counter big-party domination in Africa. It is less easy to understand the ANC’s interest in merging with the shriveled symbol of apartheid. One would like to believe that it was not simply a monstrous greed for power. It is intriguing to speculate whether some within the ANC were motivated by gratitude. After all, it was thanks to the old NP that the ANC achieved supreme power with such relative ease. The NP’s rigid segregationist policies promoted black solidarity, and by persisting with those policies in the face of international condemnation the NP ultimately gave the ANC the support of leading world powers. By alienating the verligte intelligentsia among Afrikaners it robbed itself of strategic sophistication, with the result that during the transition, NP negotiators were putty in the hands of ANC strategists. The swallowing of any opposition party by the super-dominant ANC is a loss for democracy in South Africa. It offers a fatal temptation to the governing party to claim ‘consensus’ and ‘national unity’ as grounds for expanding its hegemony. Thus, while there may be symbolic justice in the fact that the NNP is to be fatally suffocated by the ANC, it does our democracy no favours at all.

On the face of it, the final absorption of the once mighty National Party (NP) into the African National Congress (ANC) is nothing more than a small blip on the radar screen of political power. Having shriveled to a level of a mere 1,65 per cent in the elections, even if all the supporters were to follow the party into the bosom of the ANC (unlikely), it will make almost no difference to the relative strength of government versus opposition. Of far greater significance, however, is what the event tells us about our democracy and the ironies of our political history.

In his unreflective anxiety to justify his expedience in joining the ANC, New National Party (NNP) leader, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, torpedoed many of the proud claims that have been made for democracy. The sanctimonious rationale that the party will “… help build South Africa” (rather than) “criticizing from the sidelines” in effect is telling some very receptive African leaders in the African parliament that we are to host that multi-party democracy is futile and that principled opposition is a sideshow. So much for Nepad’s mission of countering big-man and big-party domination in Africa.

The ANC’s interest in the merger is less easy to understand than the self-interest of the NNP leadership. Why has it unhesitatingly welcomed and embraced the shriveled symbol of apartheid? One would like to believe that it is not merely a monstrous greed for power that makes even a one per cent addition to an already mighty majority irresistible. The ANC might be keen to capture more white voters but the NNP can deliver precious few. Perhaps the ANC feels that every single vote could help it to capture all significant local governments in the country. If this is the motive then we are indeed a bad example for Africa.

It is intriguing to consider whether a few objective analysts in the ANC might not be motivated by gratitude. The ANC owes the relative ease with which it achieved supreme power to the old National Party. Whereas the apartheid-era opposition parties might have followed the pattern in Latin America of assimilating better-educated and wealthier black and coloured minorities, the National Party’s rigidly purist apartheid promoted black solidarity and unity in the struggle. By persisting with that policy in the face of international condemnation, it also ultimately gave the ANC the support of leading world powers in addition to the crumbling Communist bloc. By prohibiting political organization outside of the homelands it handed the political initiative to the emerging trade unions and funneled a huge storehouse of political and negotiating talent to the ANC alliance. By alienating the “verligte” intelligentsia among Afrikaners it robbed itself of strategic sophistication, and during the transition most NP negotiators were putty in the hands of the ANC strategists.

In the end the mighty National Party has not been able to ensure the tenure and economic security of its erstwhile core supporters among farmers, civil servants and small businesspeople. Quite soon there will be more television programmes in Afrikaans in Europe and North America than in South Africa. The basic constitution, which the National Party co-authored, while very sophisticated, contains too few checks and balances to safeguard economic and cultural minorities effectively. The real surprise in post-apartheid South Africa was how easily all the commitments of the once powerful National Party collapsed in disarray. It is no wonder that Afrikaners no longer seem to trust Afrikaans politicians.

Back to the present, the swallowing of any opposition party by the super-dominant ANC is a loss rather than a gain for democracy in South Africa. Nobel prizewinner Amartya Sen emphasizes that an electoral majority “… can be woefully inadequate on its own, as is abundantly illustrated by the astounding electoral victories of tyrannical rulers in authoritarian regimes (and)… in the way in which opposition becomes muted and muffled…” (Mail and Guardian, 6 to 12 August, 2004). The complete incorporation of opposition parties is even worse because it leads to the fatal temptation for governing parties to claim “consensus” and “national unity” as grounds for expanding their hegemony.

So while there may be symbolic justice in the fact that the NNP is to be fatally suffocated by the ANC, it does our democracy no favours at all.