One of Many to Take Swift Action When Newt Was Received of the South African Regime's Intention to Execute Three of the ANC Six
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deocra deocra wel my son, ZI love YOU* you're going, must, know the strugg will not end own after your dath." by Carrymng our nagings, tsuut NArica cgiose to ignore appeals from even its closest frinds - including the British govermnent. The regime's behaviour nmakes a nocker yof those who argue that by befeiending South Africa the regime can be persuaded to reform. , Pretoria intended the execu tions as a show of s4t gth and determination - both to its own white electorate and to fts western allies. As history moves on, the fresh zegan determinationto win freedom wbihthel sgr i -inspired will reveal the regime's real weakne ability. In This Issue AANwsa~R EVO PLLPSwhyNelsonMandelais solespasriast- page 3 Father MICHAEL LAPSLEY explains why he's a member of the African National Congress - page 4 Specl feature on wome's fight against aparteid pages 617 - and news about IDA JIMMY, Namibtan political prisoner -page . - Toughrthan they thou Jut ALAN BROOKS and PAUL FAUVET report from Moambique how the defences against apartheid agg-eeon are being strengthened - page 9 we ii I ,t' t fthereportwasaeleedbyat i oarinoiv I{ SturdayinPtobelloRoad ' stays like that. They are contribuing to the Fincley Peace Week byo.rganising. a 'Stop the Apartheid War' public ti'g on 20 July at Friends House, 56 Alexandra Grove, N12 speakers Mike 'Terry and Marga Holness. ' The Group will also be sending birthday cards to Nelson Mandela in particular at a fundraising lunch on _Sunday 10 July. For further details contact Joan Darling, 346 7740 Bradford BRADFORD AA Group waswww.nuance.com one of many to take swift action when newt was received of the South African regime's intention to execute three of the ANC Six. A message of condemnation was telephoned to the South African embas, and the Foreign Office was contacted and urged to intervete immediately. Election rallies were also covered, which resulted in the LabourPDF candidate, Pat Wall. Create! agreeing to telegram a protest: 5 Trial On Wednesday 8 June a picket was organised outside Bradford City Hall where banners and posters were displayed and many people sigised a petition condemning the executions. A SOUTHWest Trade Union group has been set up I further antiapartheid campaigns as a result of the tgioslal supporters' conference held in Bristol on 7 May this year. The conference, while not so well attended as its qrgivalent two years ago, generated lively discussion and also served to launch Bristol AA's annual Soweto Walk appeal. Also in Bristol, the cyclists' pressure group Cyclebag has agreed to shift its £Yrmillion bank account away from Barclays, at the start of a new boycott campaign against apartheid's biggest bank. In the Rossing uranium campaign, a great deal of local TV, radio and press coverage hs been gained tor the Bristol Commission of Inquiry's report into Rio Tinto-Zinc. A copy ove 10,000 signatures fr the Free Nelson Mandela petition and as AA News goes to press (24-25 June) am holding a 24-hour picket of South Africa House to demand 'Don't let the apartheid regime murder Nelson Mandela!', 'Release all South African Political Prisoners!'. The Group has been continuing its regular Friday evening pickets of the embasy (5.30-7.30pm), street meetings in Brixton every other Saturday and collections of signatures at Camden Lock on Sundays. On 10 July there will be a sponsored walk for AAM headquarters funds and the African National Congress. A defence campaign to demand the right to demonstrate against apartheid has been set up for nine youths who were arrested outside South Affica House on 8 June during the 24-hour picket against the execution of the ANC Three. :Contact: City AA, 22 Browlow Mews. London WCIN 2LA, Tel 405 4498. Durham A ROOM IN 1Durham UIllvrsity Student Union is bing renamed after apartheid victim Ruth First, despite heated opposition from the lunatic right 'of the student world,the Federation of Conservative Students (FCS). Besides getting their renaming motion adopted, the Durham University AA Group has launched a Ruth First scholarship-fund with the help of a benefit concert by Jazz Afrika. 'A former colleague of R th's from the Sociology Department at Durham, where she taught for a number of years wsiie still living in Britain, spoke at a public meeting organsed by the Group. Contact: Durham University AA Group, c/o Dunelm House, Durham University. The Group is hoping to build links with supporters in the ct -" AA Awreaderslivingin Dra se te. ., rMtatyIorLcalGroup 1 I The Anti-Apartheid Movement has local groups in the following I centres: H IAberdeen Croydon Nottingham *Bath Dundee Oxford *Banst" Durham Peterborough I * Bamet Edinburgh Plymouth U IBirmingham Enfleid Richmond I Borders Epsom Sheffield SBradford Exeter Skelmemdale i Braintree ' Glasgow Somerset *Brent Hackn-ey Southampton * *Brighton Hangey othLondon Bristol Highgate SWHrts 'Cambridge Huddersfleld Surrey 'Camden Ipswich Teeaside *Canterbury Leeds Tyneside *Cardiff Leicester Walsa ' I * City Manchester West London I Clacton Merseyslde Wsexham I Colchester Mid.Sussexwww.nuance.com York ColNor wich. 1The Scottish Committee oftheAnti-Apartheid Movement can be contacted * Sthrough John Nehson, Secretary, 3 Rosevale Crescent, Hamilton, Lanarks, I Tel Hamilton 426781 ThePDF Welsh AAM can be contactedCreate! through the Secretary, 43 Glenroy 5 Street, Trial Roath, Cardiff, Tel Cardiff 499769 . - I The AAM London Committee can be contacted through its Secretary, CluistabelGurnsey,211LadbrokeGrove,LondonWIl,Tel 019690915La aisslasm miasss assI mm Mandea petition d 40 in donations for the political prisoners campaign. Contact: Maria de Goede 885 11013. r Margaret Ling 348 8461 Leeds LEEDS AA asked all parliamentry candidates standing in Leeds to telegram both Mrs Thatcher and Prime Minister Botha urging clemency for the ANC Three. The Labour, Aliance and Communist candidates all responded immediately, whileCouncillor George Mudic, Leader of Leeds City Council, and Euron MP Tom Megalay also sent off telegrams. Contact: Leeds AA, u/n Leeds Trades Club, Savile Mount, Leeds 7, or Carole Sunmmerill, Secretary, Leeds 685753. the bsoroughs of SouthrwarkandLambeth,'hv en rimn series of pub ic eetinngs t L h Town Hall. Two have focused on political prisoners and.South African aggression, using the new film The Sun Will Rise' and speaker Marga Hotness from the Angola lnformation Office. A third meeting on 29 June looke" at the campaign to make south London an apartheid-free cone, by asking, local councils to commit themselves to the Sheffield Declaration. Lambeth Country Fair takes place on 23-24 July and the Group will have a stall there. There will be a fundraising social in Clapham on 30 July, 8pm till late -phone Windy on 671 1468 for details. On 25 September there will be a day workshop from 11.30 until 6pm at the Oval House Arts Centre. Contact: South London AA, c/o Clapham Community Project, St Anne's Community Centre, Veun St, .london SW4. TYNESIDE AA members organised a Week of Action in commemoration of Soweto, insluding a picket of Barclays Bank- were a giant Barclaycard was ceremonially burnt - a Soweto Walk for the AAM and ANC on 19 June, and a material aid collection for the ANC. Their counterparts in the Newcastle University Student Group raised £37 for the ANC through a collection prompted by the execution of three freedom fighters on 9 June. They have also held a benefit disco for the ANC and a South Africa Freedom Day meeting. Contact: Jeremy Shepherd, c/o Newcastl, University SU, Tel 328402. 4N SPITE of bIn g disoraed by the general electi, eight members of West London AA went on the Group's sponsored walk along the Thames towpath from Richmond to Putney. A jusnble sale on the follow- - -..sri aaa. -~55sw. --, AA Group collected £160 worth of. goods for the material aid fampaign for Namibliln refugees on Saturday II llJune. The Group had been refused cooperation by the managers of several large city-centre stores, so Ernie Ro-berta MP -waiing foi decided to go ahead unannounced reply about Marcoi elsewhere - and picked on Acomb, a suburb to the west of the city. Perhaps being more visible in a less busy street contributed to the success of the collection. The Group. now plan to repeat the collection in other areas. Contact: Chris Barrett, Box 10, 73 Walmsgate, York. WHY wis a£35 msllion fueiaeesrtld off tp South Africa for a bargain banet£ent £4 million by the British Steel Corporation? The Welsh Anti-Apartheid Movement are lasing with the Lsneli Trades Council in the attempt to answer this question, whilch has caused anger and amazement throughout the steel industry. *e Theelectricarcfurnacefromthe .ige,appaledct Llanels steel plant has been sold off Hackney residents to keep up thei to the South African state steel support undertaking ISCOR. Hackney runners set the pace THE PEOPLE of Hackney sent a message about Namibia to the South African esmbassy - but found the door lockea in their faces andwww.nuance.com even the intercom tight-lipped. The letter was delivered by Hackney Council Leader Anthony Kendall, who with 'a dozen other stalwarts ran the six iles from the borough - ther most deprived iii Britain to Trafalgar Square. The mini-marathon was part of a number of events orgarise on 18 June by Hackney AA and the Namibia SupportPDF Ciommittee to celebrateCreate! 100 years of resistance by the Namibian 5 people.Trial At a meeting later that day, the immediate past Mayor of Hackney, Sam Springer, pointed to the links between Hackney and the illegally-occupied "ony, and to the poverty and exploitatioa whichboth peoples faced. * Metal Box, for example, shipped its plant and machinery off to South Africa and Chile when the going got tough in Walvis Bay, throwing hundreds of black Namibian workers on to the unemployment scrap heap.