In a landmark moment for South Africa’s fractious political landscape, the ANC and historically adversarial Afrikaner leadership groups, including Solidariteit, AfriForum, and the Southern African Agri Initiative, convened late on Tuesday in a closed-door dialogue brokered by the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC).
The meeting, described by ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri as “robust and frank”, signals a strategic pivot toward domestic collaboration at a time of escalating global pressures — notably strained US-South Africa relations.
The talks, facilitated by the PAC after months of shuttle diplomacy, focused on “South African solutions” to shared challenges, including economic inequality, land reform, and social cohesion.
Collective responsibility
While details remain scarce, Bhengu-Motsiri on Wednesday emphasised a “collective responsibility” to address national crises, hinting at potential compromises on historically divisive issues like land redistribution and language rights.
Crucially, the meeting comes amid rising geopolitical friction.
Trump, who has repeatedly criticised South Africa’s governance since leaving office in 2021, recently amplified rhetoric accusing the ANC of “anti-white” policies — a claim that has galvanised far-right groups globally and deepened anxieties among South Africa’s Afrikaner minority.
The PAC’s role as mediator is equally noteworthy.
Once a rival of the ANC, its involvement underscores a broader realignment among liberation-era factions to counter external destabilisation.
Sunday World reported recently that the PAC, known for its hardcore Pan-Africanism, proposed that the governing party engage right-wing group AfriForum.
The proposal was tabled at the two parties’ meeting in Sandton, Johannesburg, on April 9.
Among the reasons put forth by the PAC team was that talks with AfriForum would neutralise Trump’s hold on the organisation, which the source described as “opportunistic”.
PAC to play big brother role
The PAC team included party president Mzwanele Nyhontso, secretary-general Apa Pooe, and spokesperson Jaki Seroke.
The ANC delegation also heard that “AfriForum itself has been hijacked in the US to become part of the new right wing to regenerate racism differently, and it’s an international project, including [the stance] against immigrants in Europe”.
The PAC encouraged the ANC to enter into discussions with everyone. This is to be done in the spirit of the envisioned national dialogue, involving even extra-parliamentary forces.
The meeting attendants concluded that the PAC would “play a big brother role” and facilitate a meeting with the Afrikaner Leadership Network.
The body includes AfriForum as well as Afrikaner leaders in the fields of agriculture, education, business, and so forth.
