Muldergate Scandal

The Mulder gate affair, also referred to as Rhoodiegate affair or information scandal was a political affair in South Africa during the period from 1977 to 1979, which was named after Cornelius Peter Mulder, the former information minister in the government of Prime Minister Balthazar Johannes Vorster. It resulted from the becoming aware of attempts by the South African government from 1973 at great expense, the public opinion of apartheid at home and abroad through a series of covert propaganda measures to influence targeted. The affair, which is sometimes referred to as " South Africa's Watergate ," finished in the National Party 's career Mulder, who had previously been regarded as one of the most promising candidates for the succession of Vorster. They also led to the rise of Pieter Willem Botha, who replaced 1978 Vorster as Prime Minister.

Background

Background of Mulder gate affair were attempts by the South African government, public opinion on apartheid both domestically, where they mainly the English-language press negative and the suppression of positive news imputed a campaign by spreading, as to influence targeted especially abroad. Prime Minister Balthazar Johannes Vorster approved for this purpose in December 1973 to a design by Information Minister Cornelius Peter Mulder, who had proposed the provision of 64 million South African Rand from the defense budget for various covert propaganda projects.

Among the projects included, for example bribery payments to international news and press agencies, the acquisition of daily newspaper Washington Star in the United States, the financial support of English-language news magazine To the Point as well as the establishment of a pro-government English-language daily newspaper in South Africa entitled The Citizen, in particular as counterweight to the influential newspaper Rand Daily mail. The reaction took place despite protests by Pieter Willem Botha, the then Minister of Defence. A key role was played by Eshel Rhoodie, 1972-1977 State Secretary in the Ministry of Information.

Detection and consequences

Mervyn Rees and Chris Day, two journalists of the Rand Daily Mail, revealed 1977, the activities of the Ministry of Information for clues from an anonymous source. After the first publication of the announcement of further details on the establishment of a parliamentary committee led to the investigation of the financial affairs of the ministry, who noted serious irregularities in 1978. As a result, had to Mulder, who was next to the Ministry of Information and the Office of the Minister of Native Administration and Development, leave the responsibility for the information to Foreign Minister Pik Botha. He underwent further afield in the elections for the leadership of the National Party 's intra-party competitors Pieter Willem Botha. This took over in 1978, the office of the Prime Minister Balthazar Johannes Vorster of which then held the largely representative and influential loose position of president.

However, of this he resigned a year later after his privity and consent to the activities of the Ministry of Information had become fully known by the findings of a commission established by Botha. As a result of the Commission's report Cornelius Peter Mulder was excluded from the 1979 National Party Moreover, after which he resigned his remaining political office. Eight years later, he won the Conservative Party, which had developed after its founding in 1982, the leading opposition party in the country, again in May 1987, a parliamentary mandate. However, he died of illness about seven months after the election. Eshel Rhoodie was sentenced after interim flight to France in October 1979 for fraud initially to six years in prison but was acquitted on appeal. He emigrated in 1982 to the United States, where he died in 1993.

In addition to her political consequences led the Mulder gate affair for the adoption of regulations requiring newspapers in South Africa had to obtain the approval of the Attorney General before they were allowed to make public corruption by government institutions or government agencies. Another consequence was that parts of the Afrikaans press of the country abandoned their previously loyal to the government reporting and in the following years, an increasingly critical attitude income. The politically desired realignment of the press sector resulted from the recommendations of the Steyn Commission.