The outcomes of the referendum to move away from apartheid were undeniably positive – voting Yes to the voice will reaffirm this spirit
n the 1990s, when I was just a teenager, South Africa embarked upon a remarkable process to end apartheid, draft a new constitution and establish a society based on equality and justice.had been released from Robben Island after almost three decades, exiles were beginning to return, and political negotiations had begun to determine how decades of white minority rule would be ended without a massive loss of life.
The stakes were high. De Klerk needed the space to negotiate with the African National Congress and other liberation forces in good faith. If he won, and the country voted “yes,” De Klerk would neutralise his rightwing opponents and be free to sit at the table and work out the details of a new constitution.
And yet, as Mandela and others argued, a “no” vote would reverse the entire negotiation process and plunge the country into chaos. If Black and white could not sit at a table and craft a new future together, they would be forced to do battle in the streets. The time had come for change, and the choices were stark. Even racists recognised that white minority rule was no longer tenable.And so, a broad coalition of future-minded realists began the task of campaigning hard for a “yes” vote.
A mere two years later, South Africans of all races voted in a historic set of elections. That jubilant day would not have been possible without that yes campaign. South Africa is not a perfect country, but its story of transition offers many lessons. And yes, there are many differences, but the similarities between my home country and the one in which I now live, are too obvious to dismiss.
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