FW De Klerk - Explaining the Policy Change Preceding the South African Transition to Democracy

Abstract: On the 2nd of February 1990, the South African Nationalist Party leader, President FW De Klerk, announced the end of the apartheid system and the start of the South African transition to democracy. By doing so, he radically changed from a hard line policy of separate development to a soft line policy of negotiation. In this thesis, we use theories of decision-making, such as Political Learning and Rational Actors Model, to analyze the reasons behind the policy change. These theories themselves, do not explain the policy change. We find, based upon the results of a literature study, that the policy change of FW De Klerk was an outcome of political learning and rational action in combination with the downfall of communism and the sudden death of then president PW Botha.