On Wednesday 01 October 2014 I read an article (see here) in which Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu lashes out against our Government and the ruling African National Congress (ANC) over the debacle about the visa application for the Dalai Lama earlier this year.
Tutu says that our Government is kowtowing to China by barring His Holiness from attending a summit of Nobel Peace laureates in Cape Town on 13-15 October 2014. This summit would have been in honour of the life of Nkosi Dalibunga Nelson Mandela and to celebrate 20 years of freedom and democracy in South Africa.
Like in 2011, when His Holiness could not attend Tutu's 80th birthday party, the retired Archbishop had extremely harsh words for Government, declaring that he is "ashamed to call this lickspittle bunch my government." It had also been reported that the summit is cancelled due to the fact that too many participants dropped because of the Dalai Lama's visa row.
Firstly, I still need to know when exactly Government declined or rejected the application. As with all high level visa applications, His Holiness's application was a closed matter. And I only heard official reports that the Dalai Lama's office in India informed DIRCO that His Holiness wished to withdraw the application. Now, what was Government to do? Were they supposed to complete adjudication of an application that had been withdrawn?
Also, the media reported that His Holiness withdraw the application, "to save the South African government the embarrassment of having to reject his application (again)." I certainly didn't see that in the statement issued by His Holiness's office; and therefore have to conclude that this was an invention by South African media, with their proven anti-Government, anti-ANC bias. His Holiness's representative in South Africa, Nangsa Choedon, said department officials phoned her office in the past week to say they would not be granting the visa. They had not yet received written confirmation (see here). Very convenient that such a claim would be made without proof.
Secondly, the objective of the summit, namely to honour the life of Nkosi Dalibunga Nelson Mandela and celebrate 20 years of freedom and democracy. My question is, what would have been the assumed central role of the Dalai Lama in this? What was his purpose, that the summit could not be held without him? Was it really about our country and our icon, or was there an ulterior motive? Why cancel the summit because of one person's absence?
Did these laureates obtain this august award through petulance and childish behaviour?
Thirdly, the retired Archbishop is very selective in his recollection of Madiba. He says that:
"when the Americans told [Mandela] he couldn't continue his friendship with presidents [Muammar] Gaddafi and [Fidel] Castro, he told them to go and jump in the lake".
"Mandela's heirs in the ruling African National Congress party under President Jacob Zuma had now spat in [Mandela's] face"
Tutu is quite disingenuous when quoting Madiba, and as usual, only select the parts which suit him. He would be wise to recall that it was Madiba who lead discussions in favour of South Africa ditching Taiwan in favour of China. It was Madiba who signed the South Africa-China bi-national commission (NBNC) agreement. And he did not do this under any duress.
Madiba reasoned for this relationship with China in much the same way as he did about SA and the ANC's relationship with Ghaddafi and Castro; that we need to recognise and stand by those who supported our struggle for liberation. Whilst the Dalai Lama offered only words (of "wisdom") and concentrated primarily on the "struggles" of Tibet, China had been actively supporting the struggle against apartheid.
And while His Holiness probably felt with us in post-apartheid South Africa, the fact is that China today, is South Africa's biggest single-country trading partner (although, technically, the EU is our biggest trading partner, the EU is a block of countries). In August 2013, trade between South Africa and China stood at US$ 44.2 billion.
China is also the biggest foreign investor in our infrastructure development programmes. Sure, there are definite benefits to them in this, but which other country doesn't seek benefits in investments? And at least, its not as bad as some other countries, like the USA, for instance, where AGOA is supposed to be a benefit to African countries, but in reality, open our continent up to American ownership of natural resources.
Tutu should ask himself whose agenda he's advancing. Is he a patriot, or is he becoming like a child in his old age, throwing out his toys every time something doesn't suit him. And he should be honest about his intense dislike of President Jacob Zuma and our Government. And especially, he should be careful what he pray for; God might just decide to show him the error of his ways.
Moegamat Shareef Blankenberg
Click here to sign up to receive our free daily headline email newsletter
