The government has publicly disapproved the growing commercial ties between private Israeli businessmen, including some Knesset members, and the Black homelands set up by the apartheid government of South Africa, known collectively — and pejoratively–as Bantustans.
The government’s position, reflecting a desire to distance itself from those entities, was expressed by David Kimche, Director General of the Foreign Ministry. Israel does not recognize these “so-called states nor do we intend to,” Kimche declared.
No country, apart from South Africa itself, recognizes the four homelands — Ciskei, Transkei, Bophuthatswana and Venda. They are widely condemned as embodiments of South Africa’s apartheid policies.
VISITS FROM AREA CAUSE EMBARRASSMENT
But while the Israel government has been embarrassed by the well publicized visits of several Bantustan dignitaries, Kimche explained that it could not prevent them from coming to Israel since they arrived with valid South African passports. Neither can the government stop private trade by Israelis with the homelands, Kimche said, although it has recently applied an official boycott.
L.L. Sebe, President of Ciskei, has visited Israel several times, most recently as the guest of a tourism convention organized by a firm which is owned by the Tel Aviv Municipality. Last week, 18 young Ciskei men came to Israel for pilot training. It was emphasized that the government is in no way involved.
Kimche confirmed that business ties with the homelands enjoyed a strong lobby here and that several Knesset members are commercially involved with them. Another well known public figure with business ties to the homelands is Gen. (Res.) Ephraim Poran, until recently military aide to former Premier Menachem Begin.
BAN AGAINST OFFICIAL CONTACTS
Kimche said the government will henceforth make sure that there are no official contacts between Israelis and the homelands, whether inadvertent or in deliberate disregard of national policy. He indicated that once firm instructions have gone out to all government departments and State-run enterprises to shun the homelands, political pressure would be applied on MKs to keep clear as well.
In addition, Kimche said, government legal experts will seek legal ways to prevent persons from the unrecognized homelands from posing as diplomats in Israel.
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