It’s Monday. I saw Clinton on Friday night. I apologise about the late posting but I’ve been away enjoying a weekend with my family. Here we go…
After a sick day away from my desk, I was out of the loop on Friday and got into a fret about the media events for Hillary Clinton’s visit to SA which I was missing. After a flurry of phone calls, I got accreditation for Friday night’s dinner at the Presidential Guest House. It was inconvenient, but I wanted to be there. So off I went. And how pleased I am that I made the effort to get there.

I arrived on time, which turned out to be at least an hour and a half early. I waited happily trying the Botox watch. It was difficult to tell in the low light who has dunnit and who hasn’t. Deputy minister of international relations, Sue van der Merwe has not. Neither has ABSA CEO Maria Ramos. I don’t think, I might be wrong. Ramos was wearing the highest of pretty heels, and looked gorgeously petite next to her very large husband (“He’s a giant”, my daughter would say.). Once Hillary Clinton and Minister Maite Nkoana Mashabane arrived, the evening’s proceedings started off with Lebo Mashile reciting her poem “What kind of woman”. It was beautifully done, and I watched Clinton transfixed by the recital. She gave Mashile a hug and congratulated her on her poem afterward. Our lovely Minister of International Relations, wearing a beautiful shwe-shwe outfit, sang Clinton’s praises and spoke of what a good and constructive visit they had had.

They had, the these two powerful women, committed themselves to strengthening the good relations between our two countries. The partnership will enhance the efforts towards “fighting hunger, disease and ignorance, and to promote democracy and good governance, socio-economic development, peace and security as well as post-conflict reconstruction and development,” she said. No mention of a South African base for the US military.
Hillary Clinton spoke next – she is smaller and much prettier than she is depicted in photos. Clinton was as complementary towards her hostess as Nkoana Mashabane had been towards her. She opened her speech saying that she felt as if she had known our minister all her life. She spoke of looking for clear indications of how to solve problems together, of how two women on behalf of their countries made the commitment to work together and how important South Africa’s leadership is in our region and on this continent. (Lots of flattery is diplomatic, I suppose.) Again no mention of a military base.

Much of both Clinton and Nkoana Mashabane’s speeches were dedicated to women marking Women’s Day. Clinton pointed out that the role of women in South Africa is “gratifying but not satisfying”. Too many are marginalised. We must all be committed to the full empowerment of women. Clinton is now in the Congo where is she, amongst attending to other diplomatic matters, drawing attention to the epidemic of sexual assaults in its violence-torn east.

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