Introduction

This chapter gives an overview of the Accord's development, then focuses on each of the negotiated chapters: the political Code of Conduct, a Code and provisions for the security forces, socio-economic reconstruction and development, and the peace structures.

Roelf Meyer, lead government negotiator for both the Accord and constitutional negotiations, hails this experience as the real beginning of multiparty talks. It was a ‘collective effort’ of politicians, business and civil society ‘all working together in finding an answer to the problem’. The process was planned together, the experience was mostly one of consensus, ‘and it resulted three months later in the signing of the Accord, which was a major success’. The facilitators all had ‘day jobs’ so meetings began late afternoon and ‘we worked like hell in those three months, day and night’:

Fanie van der Merwe, looking at a copy of the NPA, concurs: ‘What was achieved at Codesa, was already achieved here. … it's an amazing document, that one.’

Constructing the Accord

Negotiations began in the Working Groups on 11 July. The WGs submitted first drafts to the Process Group by 2 August, to be collated by a Compilation Com- mittee brilliantly led by Fanie van der Merwe and Theuns Eloff. Compilation began on the evening of 7 August in Attie du Plessis's Sandton office.

Preambles and principles from each Group were extracted and became the Accord's Preamble and its first chapter, ‘Principles’. Language and terminology were harmonized. By noon on 8 August the first ‘Draft National Peace Accord’ was ready for referral to the parties. It went to Mandela, Ramaphosa and the ANC's NEC; to de Klerk, his Cabinet and SSC; to Buthelezi, who took it to King Zwelithini, the IFP Central Committee, and KwaZulu Legislature; and to the Auditor General for budgeting. Feedback was incorporated.