Issued by: The Department of Foreign Affairs
5 FEBRUARY 1999
Dear Friends
Welcome again to what has now become a traditional occasion for the diplomatic family in South Africa. It is always been a great pleasure for me and my Department to host you on the day of the opening of our National Assembly each year.
Tonight it is particularly gratifying for me to welcome our President, who has made a special effort to be with us. Mr President thank you. I am sure I speak for us all when I say how thrilled we are to have you among us. I might tell you all that it was not too difficult to convince him to come along tonight. Despite his demanding programme he responded immediately to my invitation to be here because I know how much he enjoys sharing time with you all.
The significance of this evening has not escaped us Mr President. We are all acutely aware that this is probably going to be the last time that you will join us as a group in your official capacity as President, before you take your well deserved rest in the valleys of qunu.
This morning while listening to you in the National Assembly you stated that, and I quote "For a country that not many years ago was the polecat of the world, South Africa has truly undergone a revolution in its relations with the international community. The doors of the world have opened to South Africa...". Your now customary modesty has again seen you master the art of the understatement. What you neglected to mention, Madiba, it is that you have been primarily responsible for this dramatic change in the fortunes of our country and its peoples. Not a day goes by without one or other world statesman seeking your audience culminated in the gathering of all our heads of mission in a ten day indaba in mid- January. We felt it timeous, wit the benefit of hindsight of almost five years in government and with the tumultuous changes around us going into the new millennium, to critically assess our activities as a Department. We are now acutely aware that the environment in which we are now operating is more complex than the one we found in 1994. We remain convinced that the principles of our foreign policy remain unchanged. This in essence means that our foreign policy remains firmly anchored in reflecting and promoting our domestic priorities. We are equally convinced that to successfully realise these priorities we have to secure peace and stability in our region. We will relentlessly continue to pursue these objectives with our partners. However, we felt it necessary to redefine the core business of our Department in a concerted and extensive process of setting objectives for ourselves and mapping our strategic plans to firmly consolidate the advances we have made during the last few years.
In the process of defining this core business we also engaged in the process of the internal transformation of the Department to ensure that our structures, policies and operating tools are refined to achieve the goals we set ourselves. Furthermore, you will all be aware that our Department has undergone a very complex period of transition since 1994. There were many issues, often difficult, which included the need to mould together disparate entities, the reality of lack of experience, human resources and expertise. I am confidant that we have now achieved this and built a coherent and effective team to boldly fact the challenges which lie ahead - central among these is our objective to sustain the level of interest shown by our friends and allies in our emerging democracy. I know we can count on all of you to assist us in our efforts to translate the political successes we have achieved together, into durable and material differences in the lives of all South Africans.
In acknowledging the growing partnership with our private sector, allow me to thank BMW for again assisting us their contribution to making this occasion a memorable one.
Without further ado ladies and gentlemen, it gives me great pleasure to ask President Mandela to address us.