REPLY TO OPEN LETTER FROM THE SA JEWISH BOARD OF DEPUTIES

9 July 2012

Dear Mr Varkevisser

With reference to your letter of 25 June, I would like to make the following brief points.

While it is true that the SA Jewish Board of Deputies may differ sharply with aspects of the current Government’s policies, this in no way implies that we are unhappy about the fact that we now live in a democratic, non-racial society  as opposed to the discriminatory, oppressive apartheid regime that preceded it.

Regarding your assertion that the South African Jewish community has always been against, and even “hated” the Afrikaners, this is ridiculous nonsense. It is true that the majority of Jews supported the political opposition during the apartheid years and that a high proportion of anti-apartheid activists were of Jewish origin. However, this was based on the firm conviction that the apartheid system was both morally wrong and unsustainable from a practical point of view, not in order to undermine the Afrikaner people.

I regret that you conclude your letter by making veiled threats against the Jewish community, that is, by stating that in the event of returning to power in the future, the Afrikaners would remember what they had allegedly done against them and expel them from the country as a danger to the nation. 

In conclusion, my advice to you is that if you and your party truly wish to be effective leaders of the Afrikaner people, you need to honestly confront the mistakes that have been made in the past rather than continually putting the blame on others. Yielding to prejudice, paranoia and self-pity will not get you anywhere.

Yours sincerely

MARY KLUK

NATIONAL CHAIRMAN