de Klerk (d? ?kl??k) n (Biography) F(rederik) W(illem). born 1936, South African statesman; president (1989?94), second executive deputy president (1994?97). In 1990 he legalized the ANC and released Nelson Mandela from prison, and initiated the abolition of apartheid: Nobel peace prize 1993 jointly with MandelaCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014de Klerk (d? ?kl??rk) n. Frederik Willem, born 1936, president of South Africa 1989?94: Nobel peace prize 1993. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.