The Solidarity Movement has launched a new initiative which aims to expedite foreign support for the activities of the various institutions of this movement. The Afrikaner Foundation will focus in particular on obtaining international support and recognition for the Afrikaners’ aspirations to continue to exist freely, safely and prosperously, and in mutual respect of and recognition for other communities at the southern tip of Africa. In this regard, the emphasis will fall particularly on the work undertaken by the various institutions of the Solidarity Movement. The Afrikaner Foundation’s activities will not only be focused on the canvassing of support, but will also serve as a platform through which Afrikaners can participate more actively in the international dialogue about the protection of communities and the preservation of tradition.
Dr Ernst Roets, head of policy at the Solidarity Movement, will also act as the executive director of this foundation. “The time is ripe for Afrikaners to once again take up their rightful place in the international community,” Roets explained. “Our experience is that more and more people around the world are becoming increasingly concerned about the situation in South Africa and, at the same time, want to make a contribution to support Afrikaners in their pursuit of a free, safe and prosperous future. Of course, in our work we do not want to isolate Afrikaners, but we work to achieve the precise opposite – to increasingly build bridges towards any person or community with whom we can collaborate. The Afrikaner Foundation will therefore be a vehicle by which support is gained, but also one by which relationships are strengthened and cooperation is promoted.”
The foundation’s activities will be aimed at mobilising tangible support from abroad, which includes cooperation agreements with foreign institutions and policy statements from foreign states. Along with that, fundraising for specific projects will be an important focus area of the Afrikaner Foundation.
This occasion was just a preliminary launch in the sense that the focus was mainly on the brand, website and the initial activities of the Afrikaner Foundation. A more official launch will follow at a later stage.
Speakers who delivered speeches at the launch were:
- Flip Buys, chairperson of the Solidarity Movement, who provided an overview of the extent of the Solidarity Movement’s projects, and the need for lobbying foreign support;
- Jaco Kleynhans, the Solidarity Movement’s head of international liaison, who gave an overview of developments in international politics, the opportunities that open up for the Solidarity Movement as a result of these developments, and the role Afrikaners can play in this regard; and
- Ernst Roets, the Solidarity Movement’s head of policy and executive director of the Afrikaner Foundation, who provided more details about the foundation’s planned activities.
The speeches of all three of these speakers will be available on the website that has just been launched: www.afrikaner.org. Those who are interested in the work of the Afrikaner Foundation can in the meantime subscribe to the newsletter on this website.
