home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Time - Man of the Year
/
Time_Man_of_the_Year_Compact_Publishing_3YX-Disc-1_Compact_Publishing_1993.iso
/
moy
/
010493
/
0104997.000
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1993-04-08
|
1KB
|
31 lines
THE WEEK, Page 12WORLDCleaning Up the Brass
South Africa's De Klerk cracks down on dirty doings in the army
It was a most unseasonal act. Days before Christmas and with
immediate effect, President F.W. De Klerk suspended or retired
23 of South Africa's top officers, including two generals and
four brigadiers. All are under suspicion of clandestine
activities -- some involving hit-squad murders -- designed to
undermine his political reforms. De Klerk dismissed talk of an
attempted military coup, saying there was no threat to South
Africa's security. But criminal charges could follow next year.
"We're not dealing with kids," he said.
All year long, De Klerk's credibility has been battered by
charges of dirty dealings within his defense forces. Thus his
crackdown on these mavericks has almost certainly scored him
some valuable points -- enough, perhaps, that in spite of
enduring a year of violence, crime and political stalemate,
South Africans are beginning to see hope for l993. "We are
closing the year on a high note," Nelson Mandela told the
Sowetan, Johannesburg's black newspaper.