"Knowing [Mandela] will start up with violence again, I, as a responsible head of state, must release him so that he can carry on with his violence, and then arrest him? What a nonsensical argument."
— P. W. Botha

January 1, 1970

Quote Details

Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Added on April 10, 2026
Unverified quote
0 likes
Presidents of South AfricaPeople of the Cold WarPrime Ministers of South Africa‎Defence ministers of South AfricaPerpetrators of political repression in apartheid-era South Africa
Original Language: English

Sources

As State President in the House of Delegates, 23 April 1986, as cited in PW Botha in his own words, Pieter-Dirk Uys, 1987, p. 86