Opponents to Apartheid Subjected to Banning Orders in South Africa
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Opponents to Apartheid Subjected to Banning Orders in South Africa http://www.aluka.org/action/showMetadata?doi=10.5555/AL.SFF.DOCUMENT.nuun1969_13 Use of the Aluka digital library is subject to Aluka’s Terms and Conditions, available at http://www.aluka.org/page/about/termsConditions.jsp. By using Aluka, you agree that you have read and will abide by the Terms and Conditions. Among other things, the Terms and Conditions provide that the content in the Aluka digital library is only for personal, non-commercial use by authorized users of Aluka in connection with research, scholarship, and education. The content in the Aluka digital library is subject to copyright, with the exception of certain governmental works and very old materials that may be in the public domain under applicable law. Permission must be sought from Aluka and/or the applicable copyright holder in connection with any duplication or distribution of these materials where required by applicable law. Aluka is a not-for-profit initiative dedicated to creating and preserving a digital archive of materials about and from the developing world. For more information about Aluka, please see http://www.aluka.org Opponents to Apartheid Subjected to Banning Orders in South Africa Alternative title Notes and Documents - United Nations Centre Against ApartheidNo. 18/69 Author/Creator United Nations Centre against Apartheid Publisher Department of Political and Security Council Affairs Date 1969-10-00 Resource type Reports Language English Subject Coverage (spatial) South Africa Coverage (temporal) 1969 Source Northwestern University Libraries Description This issue of "Notes and Documents" contains a list of those currently banned, together with brief biographical particulars when available. Format extent 70 page(s) (length/size) http://www.aluka.org/action/showMetadata?doi=10.5555/AL.SFF.DOCUMENT.nuun1969_13 http://www.aluka.org MT OF POLITICAL AND SECURITY COUNCIL AFFAIRS MT OF POLITICAL AND SECURITY COUNCIL AFFAIRS No. 18/69 October 1969 NOTES AND DOCUMENTS* OPPONENTS OF APARTHEID SUBJECTED TO BANNING ORDERS IN SOUTH AFRICA "Banning orders" are one of the arbitrary repressive measures, used by the South African Government to silence and harass opponents of a-prtheid, which have been condemned repeatedly by United Nations organs. In resolution 2396 (XXIII) of December 2, 1968, the General Assembly requested the Secretary-General to establish a register of persons served with banning orders and to publicize it as widely as possible. The Economic and Social Council in resolution 1415 (XLVI) of June 6, 1969, recommended that the General Assembly call upon the South African Government "to rescind immediately the 'Banning Orders' issued under the Suppression of Communism Act against the opponents of apartheid." This issue of "Notes and Documents" contains a list of those currently banned, together with brief biographical particulars when available. It will be noted that this list includes persons of all main racial groups in South Africa. It. includes Africans as well as Whites, Indians and Coloured people; men and women; doctors, lawyers, teachers, students, priests, workers, writers and members of other professions; and a considerable number of trade unionists. It includes many officers of organizations such as the South African Indian Congress, Coloured Peoples Congress and South African Congress of Trade Unions, which were paralyzed by the banning orders, though the organizations themselves, unlike the African National Congress and the Pan Africanist Congress, were not banned. The stringent banning orders have prevented a number of persons from continuing their jobs and professions. The restrictions have forced a number of opponents of apartheid to leave South Africa. In some cases, both husband and wife have been banned. The wives of several political prisoners have been banned. Many political prisoners have been served with banning orders immediately after completing their sentences. Others have been served with banning orders when courts acquitted them of political charges. 69-24150 *AII material in these notes and documents may be freely reprinted. cknowledgemeot, together with a copy of the publication containing the reprint, would be appreciated. -2- Though the banning orders are usually for a period of two or five years, they are often renewed. (The names of persons who had been previously banned are marked with an asterisk). Many persons have been subjected for ten or more years to stringent restrictions. Particularly serious are the restrictions on nearly forty persons subjected under the banning orders to "house arrest". A typical banning and house arrest order - served on Miss Mary Benson, a writer - is reproduced at the end of this section. Under the Suppression of Communism Act, the Minister of Justice has very wide and arbitrary powers to prohibit a person: - from entering or being in a certain place (e.g., any African location or trade union office or factory or printing works or publishing house) - from going outside a particular area or place (e.g., a magisterial district or African reserve or even a flat) - from communicating with any other person (usually another banned person) - from receiving any visitors (except an advocate or attorney managing his affairs) - from attending any gatherings - from doing specific acts (e.g., teaching, writing for publication). The definition of "communism" under -he Act is so wide and arbitrary that the repressive measures have been applied to opponents of apartheid irrespective of their attitude towards communism. The banning orders are issued under section 5 (1) (e) or section 9 (1) of the Suppression of Communism Act. Section 5 (1) (e) provides that the Minister of Justice may require any person who is listed as an officer, member or active supporter of an organization banned for furthering the achievement of any of the objects of communism, or who has been convicted of an offence under the Act, or is a communist: "(e) not to attend (i) any gathering; or (ii) any particular gathering or any gathering of a particular nature, class or kind; at any place or in any area during any period or on any day or during specified times or periods within any period, except in such cases as may be specified in the notice or as the Minister or a magistrate acting in pursuance of his general or special instructions may at any time expressly authorize." Section 9 (1) provides that the Minister of Justice may, whenever he is satisfied that any person engages in activities which are furthering or are calculated to further the achievement of any of the objects of communism, prohibit him from attending any gatherings, or any particular gathering or any gathering of a particular nature, class or kind, at any place or in any area during any period or on any day or during specified times or periods within any periods. The annexed list of banned persons is not fully up-to-date because of delays between the serving of orders and notification in the Official Gazette. It does not include those banned under section 11 (g) of Suppression of Communism Act - which is applied to prohibit publication of writings or speeches of South Africans who have left the country - or under other laws. The biographical particulars are taken mainly from press reports and are not complete. The addresses of those who have left South Africa are omitted. APPENDIX TEXT OF BANNING ORDER SERVED ON MISS MARY BENSON IN FEBRUARY 1g66 TO: DCROTHY MARY BENSON, 7 QUEENS ROAD, PARKTOWN, JOHANNESBURG. NOTICE IN TERMS OF PARAGRAPH (a) OF SUB-SECTION (1) OF SECTION TEN OF THE SUPPRESSION OF CCNMUNISM ACT, 195C (ACT NO. 44 OF 1950). WHEREAS I, BALTHAZAR JOHANNES VORSTER, Minister of Justice, am satisfied that you engage in activities which are furthering or may further the -4- the achievement of the objects of communism, I hereby, in terms of paragraph (a) of sub-section (1) of section ten of the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950 (Act No. 44 of 1950), prohibit you for a period commencing on the date on which this notice is delivered or tendered to you and expiring on the 51st day of January, 1971, from (1) absenting yourself from the residential premises situate at 7 Queens Road, Parktown, Johannesburg, at any time except (a) between the hours of six in the forenoon and seven in the afternoon on any day not being a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday; (b) between the hours of six in the forenoon and two in the afternoon on any Saturday not being a public holiday; (2) absenting yourself from the magisterial district of Johannesburg; (3) being within (a) any Bantu residential area as defined in the Bantu (Urban Areas) Consolidation Act, 1945 (Act No. 25 of 1945); (b) the area of jurisdiction of the Alexandra Local Area Committee as defined in Administrator's Proclamation No. 27 of the 3rd February, 1958; (c) any Bantu compound; (d) the premises of any factory as defined in the Factories, Machinery and Building Work Act, 1951 (Act No. 22 of 1941); (e) any place which constitutes the premises on which any publication as defined in the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, is prepared, compiled, printed or published; (f) any place which constitutes the premises of any organization contemplated in Government Notice No. R.2150 of the 28th December, 1962, as amended by Government Notice No. R.1947 of the 27th November, 1964, and any place which constitutes premises on which the premises of any such organization are situate; (g) any place or area which constitutes the premises on which any public or private university, university college, college, school or other educational institution is situate; -5- (h) any area set apart under any law for the occupation of Coloured or Asiatic persons; (i) any place or area which constitutes the premises of any superior or inferior court as defined in the Criminal Procedure Act, 1955 (Act No.