TIMELINE: Pik Botha's life in politics
Former South African foreign minister Roelof "Pik" Botha enjoyed an unheard of career in politics, that straddled both the apartheid era government and extended into the administration of former president Nelson Mandela.
Botha passed away in a Pretoria hospital on Thursday night at the age of 86.
He served as Foreign Minister for 17 years until the end of apartheid in 1994 – a world record in the diplomatic community and at the time one of the longest serving ministers in the world.
At the end of white minority rule, Botha served as the minister of Mineral and Energy Affairs in the Government of National Unity from 1994 until his retirement from active politics in 1996