Nelson Mandela urges dialogue for regional ills

Former South African President Nelson Mandela on Sunday urged empathy and dialogue, the ingredients of South Africa’s relatively peaceful 1994 transition to democracy, to resolve African woes from race violence to AIDS, Reuters has reported. He had harsh words in a wide-ranging Easter television interview for the global pharmaceutical industry, for Zimbabwe and for some of South Africa’s white farmers. But he said he remained optimistic about the world’s future. “There is a tendency to look at the negative aspects of what is happening and to ignore the broad picture. The broad picture is that there is stability throughout the world and the tensions and conflicts that occur are the exception rather than the rule. I have no doubt in my mind that the future of the world is very bright and that the forces of peace are far stronger than those of chaos and confusion,” he was quoted as saying. Mandela castigated international drug firms for their protectionism and high prices, but said South Africa, which had the highest number of people living with HIV and AIDS, should try harder to persuade them to lower their prices. Asked about continuing attacks on white farmers, Mandela said “Many of them are involved in the ruthless exploitation of their workers” and that farmers should show more concern for their staff. “They have been silent with regard to a number of atrocities committed against our people. As long as that situation exists - that they only come out when a white farmer has been killed - it makes it very difficult for the government. They must be even-handed. They must condemn the killing of the farmers as well as the ill-treatment of blacks, as well as the killing of them,” he said. Mandela said his successor, Thabo Mbeki, was right to refuse to condemn neighbouring President Robert Mugabe in public and to avoid a hardening of attitudes over Zimbabwe’s poor economic management and the seizure of white-owned farms. He was quoted as saying he was aware of at least one African leader whose corruption had made him a billionaire, but when asked to name that leader he said “...I’m sure you know who I mean”. “What is happening in Zimbabwe is regrettable. I sincerely hope that the leaders in Zimbabwe of all political persuasions will find it possible to work together, to put aside their differences and use the powerful weapon of dialogue. That’s what we did in South Africa. Without saying that this is a panacea for peace for all the world, it is a method that they might well try,” Mandela said.