This Day in History: 4 June 1969
The denial of South Africa's involvement in arms dealing with the former Rwandan Army came seven years into sanctions placed on South Africa by the United Nations.
South Africa's involvement in the murky world of arms dealing began long before the UN arms and oil embargo on South Africa. According to the Human Rights Watch report of May 1995, the National Party was instrumental the destabilising some African countries through its supply of weapons. The report looks at Rwanda, and presents evidence that P. W. Botha, flew to the Seychelles on June 4, 1969 to negotiate the purchase of arms for the Rwandan army and that a consignment of military supplies was flown from South Africa to Zaire in terms of this contract.
