Jurie Mentz Explained

Jurie Hendrik Wynand Mentz is a South African politician who served in Parliament until 1999. He represented the National Party (NP) in the House of Assembly during apartheid, but in 1993 he defected to the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP). He subsequently represented the IFP in the National Assembly from 1994 to 1999.

Political career

Mentz was born in 1925 or 1926.^[1] During apartheid, he represented the NP in the House of Assembly, serving the Vryheid constituency in northern Natal province.^[2] By 1989, he was the chairman of the NP's caucus in the house.^[3]

On 28 January 1993, he announced his defection from the NP to the IFP, which he subsequently campaigned for ahead of the 1994 general election.^[4] He told the Los Angeles Times that he had defected after visiting Eastern Europe and seeing the effect of communist policies on "the people and the economy".^[5] He said:

We can't afford this experiment... People are starting to realize they must make a choice, and the black leader acceptable to them is [IFP leader] Mangosuthu Buthelezi.

In the 1994 election, Mentz was elected to a single term in an IFP seat in the new multi-racial National Assembly.^{[6] [7]} He left Parliament after the 1999 general election.

Notes and References

1. Web site: 1994-04-13 . Inkatha supporters again defy army with display of weapons . 2023-04-20 . The Independent . en.
2. Book: Aitchison, John . Numbering the dead: the course and pattern of political violence in the Natal Midlands, 1987–1989 . 2015 . 978-0-9921766-3-1 . Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal . 203 . 939487295.
3. Web site: 1989-02-03 . PW stuns the Nats . 2023-04-20 . The Mail & Guardian . en-ZA.
4. News: Taylor . Paul . 1993-12-23 . S. Africa approves charter . en-US . Washington Post . 2023-04-20 . 0190-8286.
5. Web site: 1993-03-05 . Fearing ANC, Whites Turn to Inkatha . 2023-04-20 . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
6. Web site: 1998-06-03 . Members of the National Assembly . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/19980628034746/http://www.parliament.gov.za/mps/mps.html . 1998-06-28 . 2023-04-12 . Parliament of South Africa.
7. Web site: 24 May 1994 . Minutes of proceedings of the Constitutional Assembly . 2 April 2023 . Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.