“State President FW de Klerk’s opening address to Parliament is remarkable in several respects- Coming as it did in the wake of breathtaking events in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe it takes on special salience. Perestroika and Glasnost came south. Not only did President de Klerk recognise the gathering forces of
change from within, but also those in the world which are likely to sweep through the hills and plains of South Africa and the
region. Informing the speech is a strong desire for readmission to the world and a recognition that apartheid has become obsolete. Thus, the speech will to some extent shape the future pattern of foreign relations, as well as the character of the
transition to a new domestic order, the end of which we know not yet.”
