Zach de Beer, former leader of the PFP (1988-1989) and the DP (1989-1994) is one of the forgotten men of South African history. During the darkest years of the apartheid state, he, along with others, kept liberal democratic ideals alive. Outside of parliament, as a prominent figure in the financial world, he encouraged constitutional and political reform. He played a leading role in the founding of the Democratic Party in 1989. In recognition of his contribution to the anti-apartheid struggle, President Nelson Mandela appointed him as ambassador to the Netherlands in 1994. He died in 1999.