ABSTRACT

Alfred Nzo served as the newly democratic South Africa’s Minister of Foreign Affairs between 1994 and 1999. His tenure was widely criticised. Nzo was described as ineffectual and inert by the media, opposition parties and even by some within his own African National Congress. These criticisms have been unquestioningly absorbed by historians and foreign policy scholars, and now constitute a cornerstone of the conventional wisdom regarding the Mandela Administration’s foreign policy. This article draws on a range of interviews with officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs to provide an alternative portrait of the Foreign Minister. While rarely animated, many DFA officials recall Nzo as accessible and closely attuned to the critical international issues confronting South Africa. The article concludes by considering the methodological missteps that contributed to misunderstanding Nzo, and reflects on the difficulties of personality-driven political analysis.

摘要

阿尔弗雷德·恩佐（Alfred Nzo）在1994年至1999年期间担任新民主的南非外交部长。他的任期受到广泛批评。媒体，反对党甚至他自己的非洲人国民大会中的一些人都将恩佐描述为无效和惰性的。这些批评无疑已被历史学家和外交政策学者吸收，现在已成为有关曼德拉政府外交政策的传统智慧的基石。本文借鉴了外交部官员的一系列采访，以提供外交部长的替代肖像。许多DFA官员虽然鲜为人知，但他们回想起Nzo可以通达并与南非面临的重大国际问题密切相关。