Afrikaners 'go international'

2008-05-19 14:09

Pretoria - Afrikaners have joined an international organisation fighting for the rights of minorities, Freedom Front Plus leader Pieter Mulder said on Monday.

The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), at its General Assembly in Brussels over the weekend, accepted the Afrikaner people as one of its 70 members which include Australia's Aboriginals, the Maasai of Kenya and Tanzania and Tibetan monks.

According to the FF Plus, the inclusion in this international pressure group was one of the parties' greatest achievement's to date.

"If you look at the situation in South Africa at the moment, it would be unwise for a group such as the Afrikaner not to consider other options, and one of those options is to internationalize our case," Mulder told reporters at a press conference in Pretoria.

UNPO's membership consists of indigenous peoples, minorities, and unrecognised or occupied territories.

"It is an organisation that fights for the right of the world's silent voices," Mulder said.

It has grown from its original fifteen founders, to representing almost 70 Members worldwide.

Except for minority groupings, it also includes countries that have declared independence and have not been recognised internationally such as Somaliland which is part of Somalia, and Iraq's Kurdistan.

The organisation lobbies internationally for the rights of these communities and countries including at the United Nations and European Parliament.

It counts the recognition of Kosovo as one of its successes.

- SAPA