ثابو امبيكي : المحاكم لا تنهي الحروب الأهلية

Quote: South Africa’s Codesa talks represented a recognition by both sides that their preferred option was no longer within reach: Neither revolution (for the liberation movements) nor military victory (for the regime) was in the cards. Both sides were quick to grasp that if you threaten to put your opponents in the dock, they will have no incentive to engage in reform. Rather than criminalize or demonize the other side, as was tempting, they sat down to talk. The process was punctuated with many a bloody confrontation, like the assassination of the popular South African Communist Party leader, Chris Hani, but the eventual outcome decriminalized the alleged perpetrators and incorporated them into the new political order. Yesterday’s mortal enemies became mere adversaries