“In a sense it is a relief that this is now coming out,” Pols says interview about his past. A burden may have been lifted from him, but the news also cost him his new job at Tata Steel, as director of sustainability and communications. He was barely two days into it.
Donald Pols himself hoped to make more of a difference within the company than as an activist from the sidelines. But according to critics, Pols risked his good name by switching from the activist organization Milieudefensie to Tata Steel, one of the Netherlands’ major polluters.
We will never know whether Pols’ plans would have succeeded in IJmuiden. But it is now certain that his good name has been tarnished.
Pols versus Mandela
NRC recently came across images from April 1991 in South Africa, allegedly showing a young Pols setting fire to a flag of ANC, Nelson Mandela’s party. On that day, Pols’ right-wing extremist student association ASF prevented the recently released Mandela from giving a speech. Mandela fought for the abolition of apartheid, a system that systematically oppressed black people in South Africa.
Regarding the video, Pols first admits that it can be seen, and later denies it. But more importantly, he confirms that he was leader of the ASF at the time and fought against the ANC. Pols says he ‘looks back on it with disgust’.
“It is reprehensible behavior, they were wrong positions, very wrong positions,” he tells NRC. He does add that at the time he was not concerned with maintaining the racist apartheid system, but with “the freedom of the Afrikaner community”.
‘Donald has distanced himself and expressed regret’
Tata Steel said in a press release that it was ‘touched’ by the news. According to the company, the additional information that has become known about Pols’ past is ‘enough reason’ to fire him. The company will not respond to further questions by telephone.
Pols says he understands Tata Steel. “I understand that Tata was in a difficult situation and had to make a choice. I acted wrong then and now have to bear the consequences. I don’t want to blame this on anyone,” he says. “It is also part of it that I am being tackled so violently. I deserve that.”
Milieudefensie’s South African past has been known since 2021, according to a response from Marty Smits, current chairman of the Supervisory Board of Milieudefensie.
“During our conversation, Donald clearly distanced himself from his past on all fronts and expressed regret. In his years at Milieudefensie, Donald was committed to Milieudefensie’s mission, a just and equal world.”