Buthelezi, Gatsha Mangosuthu

Buthelezi, Gatsha Mangosuthu (b. 27 Aug. 1928). South African politician Born in Mahlabatini (Zululand) as the grandson of King Dinizulu. Admitted to Fort Hare University in 1948, he joined the ANC Youth League, where he met Sobukwe and Mugabe. Expelled for ANC activities in 1951, he became chief of the Buthelezi tribe in 1953, and was made chief executive officer of the newly established Kwa Zulu Territorial Authority in 1970. In 1975, he founded Inkatha yeNkululeko yeSizwe (Freedom of the Nation), an organization committed to non-violence which soon emerged as the predominant political movement of the Zulu people. In 1976 he consolidated his role as chief spokesman for the Zulu by becoming Chief Minister of Kwa Zulu, but subsequently rejected independence for his poor nation. He consistently demanded the release of the ANC leader, Nelson Mandela, though relations worsened during the 1980s. Buthelezi opposed international sanctions to end apartheid, arguing that the system could only be ended through the internal logic of a liberal economy. This stance stood in stark contrast to the socialist rhetoric of the ANC. It gave him a growing international platform as a ‘legitimate’ spokesperson for the South African Blacks at the expense of the ANC, particularly among the right-wing governments of Europe and the USA. Buthelezi's authority was fundamentally weakened by Mandela's release in 1990 and the subsequent revelation that Inkatha had received payments from the South African government (though he denied knowledge of this). In an attempt to halt his own marginalization in South African politics through Mandela's authority, he assumed a stubborn stance in the negotiations for a new constitution. He founded the Inkatha Freedom Party in 1990, which won the state elections for the new territory of KwaZulu-Natal in 1994. In that year, he also agreed to become Minister for Home Affairs in Mandela's government, despite continuing tensions between the Inkatha and the ANC, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal.

On 20 September 1994 Buthelezi was dismissed by the Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini from his office of Chief Minister of KwaZulu-Natal after considerable disagreements. Nevertheless, he managed to retain some influence over the province through being elected President of the Upper House (Chamber of Chiefs), which could delay provincial legislation. In 1998, he was found guilty by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for being responsible of violent attacks of his followers against members of the ANC and other opponents.