The Black Sash, Vol. 30, No. 4

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Page 1 of 53 Alternative title The Black SashThe Black Sash Author/Creator The Black Sash (Cape Town) Contributor Zille. Helen Publisher The Black Sash (Cape Town) Date 1988-03 Resource type Journals (Periodicals) Language English Subject Coverage (spatial) South Africa Coverage (temporal) 1988 Source Digital Imaging South Africa (DISA) Relation The Black Sash (1956-1969); continued by Sash (1969-1994) Rights By kind permission of Black Sash. Format extent 56 page(s) (length/size)

Page 2 of 53 VOLUME 30 No 4 MARCH 1988

Page 3 of 53 March 1988 55New chair in Humanrights at StellenboschOne of the broad objectives of theBlack Sash is to seek constitutionalrecognition and protection by lawof human rights and liberties for all.That great unsung champion ofhuman rights in South Africa, thelate Donald Molteno, QC, oncethanked `the ladies of the BlackSash' for being `so large an adventon to the side of the angels'. Webelieve he would have been asinterested as we are to note anotheradvent, in the institution of a newchair in human rights law at theUniversity of Stellenbosch.In resigning from the SupremeCourt to take up this professorship,Mr Justice LWH Ackerman said`the effective protection of humanrights in this country is the mostimportant legal issue facing lawyersin the short, medium and longterm'.Problems for today's proponentsof human rights are accusations oftokenism, of a new-found concernfr p er, rightso rop y , in a time ofimminent change, and the damagethat protection of group privilege inthe guise of group rights will do tomajority acceptance of a Bill ofRights.1987 has been the year when theinfluential Nederduitse Gerefor-meerde Kerk admitted its fault inhaving proclaimed that Apartheidwas the will of God. We lookforward to further manifestationsof the new dynamic in Stellenboschtowards achieving a democraticnon-racial South Africa. 0Dot Clemin.rhawJulia Denney movesto JohannesburgJulia Denney has belonged to theAlbany Branch of Black Sash sincethe beginning of 1985, but will soonbe moving to Johannesburg. Shespoke to Sue Ross.`Being a member of the BlackSash has helped me cope with beinga white, middle-class, privilegedlady,' states Julia.`It has helped me to feel that I'mdoing what I can. It's not only whatSash does, but its function ineducating and keeping peopleinformed, which is an ongoingthing.'`1985 was a traumatic year.Matthew Goniwe's funeral was alandmark experience. There wewere - a handful of white womenfrequently greeted with cries of"Viva Black Sash"!'Julia sees the work done by theBlack Sash as being always politicstempered with humanity. 'I feeluncomfortable working withpeople whose motives are intel-lectual and political and nottempered with humanity. Part ofthis means not losing sight of thefact that the government or thosewho are in authority, are alsohumans. It is hard, especially forpeople in the townships, to regardmen in uniform as also human. It'sa tremendous challenge.'`People in Grahamstownprobably live on a higher level ofstress than almost anywhere else inthe country, a psychologist hassuggested,' Julia says, `becausethere is so much political stress. In aclose-knit community this results inforcing one into awareness ofapartheid and its consequences. 1am expecting the Black Sashexperience of Johannesburg to hefurther removed.'`However, I'm glad to see in theSash magazine that I won't bejoining a vast impersonal group.With the new decentralisation, I'mlooking forward to belonging to theMelville-Westdene branch andgetting involved there.' flSlide programmes onBrazilian farm workers`Farm Workers in Brazil' is a slideprogramme with relevance forSouth Africa. The 64-slide packagedepicts the process by whichBrazilian peasants have beenoccupying vacant land and trying togain title to it. The peasants explainhow they came to be landless, forexample, due to drought, tomech-nisation, or to being drivenoff the land by vigilantes. Theirstories are contained in a script: thedistributors recommend that, fordramatic effect (until the proposedtape has been prepared), voicesshould be chosen to read thevarious parts in tandem with theslides. The script is available inEnglish and Afrikaans and may betranslated into other languages onrequest. The slide package isavailable from InternationalLabour Research and InformationGroup (ILRIG), Box 213, SaltRiver, 7925. Phones: (021) ,650-3504 (University of Cape Town),or 47-6375 (Community House).Mounted slides, ready to project,can be purchased at approx. K 130per set.Candy Malherbe

Page 4 of 53 THE 1988 NATIONAL CONFERENCEJohannesburg 10 to 13 MarchPROGRAMME OUTLINEPublic Meeting Great Hall Thursday 10 8 P.m.Wits UniversityWorking Sessions 'Koinonia' Thursday 10 12 to 5 p.m.Wednesday 9 1 to 5 p.m. Judith's Paarl Friday 11 9 to 5 p.m.(Closed session: Advice and field- Johannesburg Saturday 12 9 to 5 p.m.workers meeting.) Sunday 13 9 to I p.m.Observers Observers will be welcome at the mation please call (021) 685 3513open sessions. For further infor- (mornings) or (O1 I) 337 2345.BACKGROUNDsince his accessionTHIS YEAR'S Conference, to be toheld in Johannesburg, will once so publiclythe general secretaryship of theagain bring together delegates SACC. He has endured a greatfrom all seven Regions of the deal in his demonstration of hisBlack Sash. 1988 will mark, on ,~ commitment to bringing about a10 December, the 40th anni- sbetter, more just and more trulyversary of the signing of the ~~ Christian society in South Africa.Universal Declaration of Human' .:Resolutions and items forRights, and we propose to keep discussion on the agenda of thethe issue of human rights alive working sessions will include:throughout the conference and in a capital punishment (to whichall aspects of our work during the the Black Sash has alreadyyear. expressed its opposition)We shall be particularly new conditions for statehonoured to welcome as our guest subsidy to universitiesspeakers at the public meeting to - a the Federation of Southopen the conference Ms Nora African womenChase of the World Council of Above: Nora Chute poverty, unemployment andB<

Page 5 of 53 contentsEDITORIAL Sarah-Anne RaynhamLAW ON A KNIFE-EDGE Shauna Westcott 5Cape political trial chow that our legal system i.r in precarious balance.TREASON TRANSVAAL-STYLE Bruce Anderson 10Transvaal court staggering beneath a heavy load.THE JUDICIARY AND HUMAN RIGHTS Sarah Christie 12The low-down on co)zte.rtsng judgements in Bloemfontein.GOVERNED VERSUS THE GOVERNMENT IN NATAL Michelle Norton 13Challenging the Emergency regulation.r.STREET LAW Jill Joubert, Wilfried Scharf 15Good new about practical law.FREEDOM! JUSTICE! DIGNITY! PEACE! Michelle Saffer 18Re-interpreting a Black Sarh refrain.PEOPLES' JUSTICE Wilfried Scharf 19'S-ae clarification on a complex and clouded issue.STREET LIFE Photo Essay 24Cape Town Strollers assert a lifestyle of their own.Cover noteOur cover illustration by Lucinda Jolly, bared on photographs of unsungSouth African activists, foreshadows the 40th anniversary of the Declarationof Human Rights and the six-month Black Sash campaign on human rightswhich will be given direction at the national conference.The mood of the drawing it deliberately assertive and joyous. If this .seemsout of place at a time when the further erosion of civil liberties iscausingdepression and deep alarm tee might well remember Emma Goldbergwords: 'If I can't dance it's not my revolution.'

Page 6 of 53 10 March 1988POLITICAL TRIALStreasontransvaal-stylebruce andersonThe 22 UDF lcad-chargod in theD,lrrta.r trearrrr/rhnta,r; r-aphed inApril 1986. Thethree who -vain incrc.rtody ichile thetrial corJliuncs areMo.rs chikane(irtandin,r; Jar left)Patrick Lckota (htclar,E hlazcr mriddleroc. fifth /ror::ri,htl andPopo tYtol%(kn-tin" Jrorttrote, fourth fronJTHE KNOWN: ''his year has seen a phenomenal growth in- mv. mumw.n of polItICaI trlalS In the TranS-vaal. There are 40 people facing charges oftreason in five separate trials in the Transvaal.I reason is universally the most seriouspolitically related common law charge thatcan he brought against a person, but ourInternal Security Act has created a number of~tatui iv ulfences that are also politicallyrelated. The number of prosecutions insti-tumd in terms of the Internal Security Act thiswar has been v cry high. A further feature hasl,ecn attempts by the state to use normalcommon law off ences in an attempt tocriminalise political opponents through thecNelson Mandela and seven co-accused were sentenced to life imprisonment.The trial is highly significant both because keyUDF leaders are on trial and because itreveals clearly the kind of issues that are atstake in other smaller, less publicised trials inthe Transvaal.The key UDF figures in the Delmas trial arePatrick Terror Lekota, national publicitysecretary of the UDF, Popo Mulefe, nationalorganiser of the UDF and Moss Chikane,former Transvaal general secretary of theUDF. The three are the only accused still incustody. Of the original 22 leaders charged,three have been acquitted and 19 released onball.The basis of the state case is that theaccused attempted to overthrow the state byviolent means. The scale of the trial has beenenormous. M ore than 20 000 pages have beenused to chronicle the course of the trial so far.Over 30 organisations have been implicated inthe state case and more than 900 conspiratorshave been named and could face trial if thestate case against the accused proves success-ful.It has become one of the longest-runningtreason trials in South Africa's history. Thetrial began in earnest in .lanuary 1986 and it1s, s proved to be a marathon undertaking forthe defence counsel, George Bizos , C andA rt S" , ha,~h r Chaskalson ho e beeninvolved. The defence began to present its

Page 7 of 53 March 1983 11POLITICAL TRIALScase in January 1987 and it is expected to takealmost as much time to present as the statecase.The defence is relying on three counter-arguments to rebut the state case. These arethat the accused did not follow a policy ofviolence, that they cannot be held responsiblefor violence which flared throughout thecountry in 1984 and 1985, and that the UDFwas not formed in response to a call fromANC President sliver Mambo.Another treason trial that has arousedconsiderable interest, despite being heardlargely in camera, has been that of MosesMayekiso, general secretary of the NationalUnion of Metalworkers of South Africa, andfour co-accused in the land Supreme Court.The five men have pleaded not guilty totreason and alternative charges of subversionand sedition. The state has alleged that themen tried to seize control of Alexandra in1985 and 1986. Mr Justice van der Walt hasordered that the evidence of Alexandraresidents be heard in 'a a to preventpsiblereprisal The trial i~stehre f' rst in wh chos s.the state has alleged that the accused set upalternative people's structures to compete forpower with the state. It is likely to be closelyfollowed by activists throughout the country,for if the accused are found guilty then furtherprosecutions could follow against people whohave established alternative people'sstructures in other parts of South Africa.The trial has attracted considerableTHE UNKNOWN:The trial of MI-IiMielies ,ad Moses)aiajies is one of alo,ig list not featuredin this issue. In thepicture below, theirfamilies receiveofficial confirmationof their hanging as aresult of the killing ofEastern Cape Com-munity CouncillorKinikini and family.publicity overseas, largely as a result ofMayekiso's prominence as a trade unionleader in South Africa. In October a full-pageadvertisement calling for his release appearedin The Independent newspaper in Britain.In another treason trial in the RandSupreme Court involving Alexandra resi-dents eight young men ranging in age from 19to 28 were alleged to have conducted people'scourts in Alexandra. State evidence was thatthe comrades encouraged residents to bringcharges before people's courts. By allaccounts in the trial the people's courtsusurped the existing channels of justice. Thecourt was told of a graphic demonstration ofthe power wielded by the comrades in the firsthalf of last year when the number of chargeslaid at the Alexandra police station droppedsharply, this in turn affecting the number ofcases brought before magistrates.A review of other politically related trialsin the Transvaal would be a lengthy one. ADetainee's Parents Support Committee(DPSC) report takes three pages just to listthe more serious trials for October 1987.However, what has become abundantly clearthis year is that the state has resolved topursue these cases relentlessly no matter howmany months they occupy on court diariesand irrespective of the amount of timeactivists are forced to spend in custody whileawaiting the outcome of their cases.Bruce Anderson is Supreme Court reporter forThe Star.

Page 8 of 53 12 March 1988POLITICAL TRIALSthe judiciaryand human rightssarah christieThe actingchief ju.rticeassiduouslyavoidsrevealingtheprincipleswhichinform hischoiceThe recent Appellate Divisionjudgment in three separate casesdealing with the rights ofEmergency detainees, one ofwhom is a member of the CapeBay; is a snub to what lookedlike advancer in civil liberties.purposes of the Act, namely - themaintenance of the public order, the safety ofthe public and the terminating of theemergency.It was strenuously though unsuccessfullyargued that the very wide powers of the statepresident must nonetheless be applied to thepurposes of the Act and if they are not, thenthe regulations are unlawful. Rabie held thatbecause the state president has the power tochoose the means and method to achievethese purposes, it cannot be said that thedetention clause `is unrelated' to the purposesof the Act.This is a curious argument. The head of thejudiciary refuses to distinguish betweenmeans and ends and asserts that becausedetaining people for a long time, withouthearing them, is not unrelated to the aims ofthe Act then it is impliedly authorised by theAct.Professor John Dugard states that thoughthe judicial decision is essentially an exercisein choice', the court in Omarchose to excludecommon law rights although the dissentingjudgment of Hoexter argued that basic rightsare to be retained unless an Act of Parlia-ment expressly compells their denial.The Acting Chief Justice assiduouslyavoids revealing the principles which informhis choice.It is the principle of our common law that avalid regulation may only take away pre-existing rights if specifically or necessarilyempowered by an Act of Parliament. Courtsshould also interpret ambiguous legislation infavour of the freedom of the individual.In Omar it is hard to know what significan-ce is to be accorded to `fundamental rights'when subordinate legislation takes themaway, without parliamentary authorisation.Etienne Mureinik has argued thatfundamental rights comprise a body whichprotects all those human rights essential to thecoherence of the legal system of a state: itsmar/Fani/Bill v The Min' .rter of LamOund,rdr 1987 (3) SA 859 (A) is one ofthe most important cases to deal with civilliberties in the past twenty years in SouthAfrica: it akes dispiriting read Ing.Wt s7 ,ha i the significance of the cases? Thefacts were not in dispute: they all concernedclaims by detainees that they were entitled tobe given reasons for their detention, to be ableto make representations why they should notbe detained, and to have access to their legaladvisers. The Emergency regulations pro-vided that a person may be detained for 14days but that the Minister of Law and Ordermight `without notice to any person andwithout hearing any person' extend the period`until the expiry of the State of Emergency'. Adetainee is only entitled to access to a lawyerwith the permission of the Minister of Lawand Order or the commissioner of the SouthAfrican Police.I the ''` _t s were not an issue, what was? Atissue in the appeal against decisions in theprovincial divisions of the Supreme Courtwas whether the Public Safety Act empower-ed the state president to make regulationswhich prevent a detainee from knowing whyhe is to be kept in detention, not permitted tomake representations in regard to his deten-tion and not permitted access to an attorney.'I he appeal court did acknowledge thefundamental entitlement at common law toaccess to an attorney and to be heard, prior toone's rights being detrimentally affected.But Acting Chief Justice Rabie upheld thevalidity of the regulations. Why`?I he explanation he proffers (and withwhich three other appeal judges concurred) isvery simple: the Public Safety Act is designedto deal with an extraordinary situation inwhich the state president is permitted by theAct to perceive the ordinary law of the land asinadequate, is given very wide powers.to makeregulations which in his opinion are necessaryIa or expedient for the achievement of the

Page 9 of 53 March 1988 13It is difficultto. assertnationalinde-pendencewhen thehead of thejudiciarydeclares tothe countrythat fun-damentalrights arenot worthvery much.judiciary, legislature and constitution. It isspecious for the appeal court to makedeference to civil liberties, to use the languageof human rights while acquiescing in apusillanimous way in their demise.Hoexter argued that the regulationprovides that people may be detained eitherfor the maintenance of public order or publicsafety on the one hand, or for the safety of thedetainee himself, on the other. If detaineesarein detention for their own safety they oughtsurely to be told that this is so, since at thevery least they ought to be able to decline thisprotection. To assert a contrary ~ iew is anabsurdity.What is the significance of Omar? It ishard to gauge in the long term; it has certainlypiit a halt to a number of efforts to compellaccountability to some semblance of naturaljustice by those who detain. It has done s-redamage to the image of the judiciary asindependent and courageous upholder ofcommon law principle. It is difficult to assertthe existence of national independence whenthe head of the judiciary declares to thecountry that fundamental rights are notworth very much, when it seems that theemergency climate has subverted criticalintelligence when the say-so of the head of theNational Party, wearing the state president's.shat, overrides common law principle.'l his phenomenon is not peculiar to SouthAt rica. In England during the Second WorldWar, the intellectual and politic,il climate ofwar subverted common law principles. Here,Omar has contirmed that ~ilthough martiallaw has not been declared, the appeal c~urtwill permit the executive arm of thegovernment to remove troublesome libertiesso long as this is done in the name of thePublic Safety Act and so long as it does so atthe highest level of the executive. Ovucrl~ ,r /--,r in /a, j., ak )crh (.4, 11 c, I,, hc,ici,POLITICAL TRIALSgovernedversus thegovernmentin natalmichelle nortonDuring 1987, amid escalating violence inthe province, the Natal Supreme Courtwas frequently cast into the political arena toadjudicate upon clashes between governmentand opposition forces.At a time when the legal system has beenexperiencing an increasing shift away fromparliamentary and towards executive law-making, the most significant type of interven-tion has been the testing of Emergency regula-tions granting vast and repressive powers tothe executive. Freedom of speech, alreadydepleted, was dealt a severe blow in April1987 when the commissioner of police,empowered to create certain offences, out-lawed reporting of certain security action anc'campaigns calling for the release of detaineeIn applications brought by several extraparliamentary organisations, the NatalSupreme Court was called upon to test thevalidity of these regulations.In Pietermaritzburg a full bench of theSupreme Court declared invalid a number ofrestrictions on the media, as well as powersgiven to the commissioner of police by thestate president. In Durban Mr Justice Leondeclared invalid regulations forbidding, callsfor the release of detainees. He described thecurbs as involving an attack on the freedom ofthe press and on the freedom of speech.Late in the year, on 22 September, theSupreme Court dismissed an application bythe Release Mandela campaign and theWeekly Mail to haze the existing, State ofEmergency declared inxalid. I he aptfl;,itionwas based on the argument that it state ofEmergency could not be declared at the timethat there existed another declaration of aState of Emergency. Mr Justice Howarddecided, ho,-, that the legislature h~tdobx iously .foreseen the possibility that thecircumstances giving rise to a State of Emer-gency could outlast the 12 months for whichthe proclamation applied and a fresh procla-mation would have to be issued.

Page 10 of 53 14 March 1988POLITICAL TRIALSDoric McBride,pictured outsidethe Supreme CourtPietermaritzburg,while the trial ofher Ton RobertMcBride war i1zprogress.In the criminal 1phe.'re the Court was facedwith trial, of sexer~tl oen,rs involvingpolitically motixated xiolenec. 1~he mostt:xtreme form of political activism . thedirection of ,iolcncc against civilians wasthe basis of the case against Robert McBrideanti Greta Apelgren which began in Pieter-maritzburg in February 1987. In AprilMcBride was convicted on charges of murder,attempted murder, assault, and terrorism,chiefly relating to the planting of a car bombw hich exploded outside a Durban beachironthotel in June 1986, killing three people andinjuring 98 others. The other incidentins ol\ ed was the iolent freeing of suspectedtor i,t Gordon Web, ter from Edendalehospital in May 1986, and it was in respect ofthis offence that Apelgren was convicted ofcounts of assault with intent to do grievousbodily harm and contraventions of theTerrorism Act. The political content andsignificance of the trial was made explicit inthe course of the sentencing process. Defencecounsel, Day id Gordon SC'. describing theca, a, a 'South African tragedy', ledextensive evidence as to the socio-politicalcontext of the offences. Economic,educational and social deprivation caused byapartheid were argued to be at the root of thefrustration and bitterness which drove theaccused to political activism.yl'hile recognising these factors, MrJusticeShearer found that they did not constituteextenuating circumstances which would'uL'Id , Me Bride's blameworthiness. Hecondemned the punishment of 'people yottpresume tot be innocent for those who ha\coflended against you' and imposed threedeath sentences upon McBride. Apelgren wassentenced to an elfecti\e one year and ninemonths' imprisonment.A month later trial of other participants inthe Edendale escape culminated in the con-ictions of Derrick McBride and Arturo duPreen for murder and tour counts ofattempted murder. Once again, the trustra-titrn stemming from South Africa's racialdi,pcnsation was presented as an extenuatingcircumstance, but the absence of politicalaffiliation, or motive was a ground forlenience for these accused. Mr Justice Krickfound extenuation to exist on the personallevel of McBride's illnesses and his specialrelationship with his son, Robert, who hadurged him to assist in the offence. Du Preez'sparticipation, the judge stressed, did not havea political connotation, but was motivated bythe desire to help an old friend. Du Precz andMcBride received sentences of imprison-ment for effective periods of 15'/-and 12yea rs.y A major Terrorism Act trial was also heldin Pietermaritzburg during April. In the caseagainst Ramlakan and others, nine men werefound to have conspired to assist the ANC tooverthrow the government by violence andwere convicted of terrorism. l he accusedwere found to have been involXed in cariousbombing incidents - such as explodingbombs at the Chatsworth Magistrate's Courtduring 1985 and outside the home of MrAmichand Rajbansi -- as well as in theestablishment of arms caches and in therecruitment and training of ANC members.In addition to evidence of political grievancesled in mitigation of sentence, defence counsel,Alan Magid SC, informed the Court that hehad visited Nelson Mandela in PollsmoorPrison during the course of' the trial, andoutlined to the Court Mr Mandela's versionof the events leading up to the ANC'sadoption of a policy of violence in 1961. Fromthis he argued that the accuseds' resort toviolent methods was a final resort once apeaceful solution seemed impossible.Professor Andries du Toit confirmed thatpolitical violence could be morally justifiedwhen all other options had been exhausted,but limited this justification to action directedagainst `hard' or military targets. Mr Justicel hirion, however, emphasised the Court'srole in trying to stem the tide of x iolence andaprotec 0 f s~s tor oc iety, rather than themotivation of the accused, in sentencing theaccused to periods of imprisonment rangingtr om six to 12 years.South African political organisations andtheir lawyers have tended to look to the Natalbench for help. Quite often these applicationshave been successful, but only in the shortterm. The State can almost invariably .berelied upon to go on appeal to Bloemfontein *As a result the effect of the NatalJudgments, both in that province and the restof South Africa, is neutralised by months ofdelay and uncertainty and eventualoverruling by the Appellate Division.Michelle Norton, member of Black Sash NatalCoastal, is currently in England to complete herDoct-l Studies in law.

Page 11 of 53 March 198815spotlight on street lawSuddenly, amidst the gloom engendered by a legal system which israpidly losing legitimacy, many people are becoming enthusiastic abouta new way of looking at practical law. Wilfried Scharf sketches thebackground and Jill Joubert describes its advent in Grahamstown.NO VEHICLESIN THE PARKay OP DER-'Are skateboards' bicycles and pram .r alto vehicles?'- thin caption andquestion invites stdents to analyse thelegal problem, pored by the care ruggerted in thin cartoon - one of manyillustrations in Street Law: A Handbookfor South African Students, by David McQuoid Mason.The concept of Street Law was developedin the United States 15 years ago andholds great promise for South Africa. It setsout to encourage people tothink criticallyabout the law (whether they are scholars,students, teacher or adult working incommunity organisations). It does this in avry enjoyable manner which Is great fun.e'Everyone doing Street Law is required toparticipate actively in a learning processwhich emphasises problem solving throughrole-play and buzz groups. In this processlrners find out what the law is In ~nyearimportant areas of their lives. In addiiintion,learners are actually encouraged to thinkabout such laws, to evaluate them as fair,orunfair, and they are led to suggest how thelaws should be changed. Several of the gamesput the learners into a position where they arelaw-makers and are encouraged to make lawsas they would like to see them.Professor David McQuoid-Mason of NatalUniversity has written Street Law books forSouth African circumstances. Ultimatelythere will be six volumes containing easy-to-grasp ways of learning about the law. Thebooks include cartoon drawings, problem-solving games and guides as to how to runmock trials. Each topic is treated in twoformats: one for the learners, the other forteachers. The idea here is that teachers do nothave to be lawyers themselves, nor do theyneed to have studied law. They need simply tofollow the instructions in the teacher's book.They get help from a regional co-ordinatorbased at a law school in the region, who runsweekly workshops for teachers. Law studentswill also be part of the scheme acting asresources to teachers who want additionalhelp.The project is being implemented in Natalwhere it is being received with greatenthusiasm. Several workshops have alsobeen conducted in the Western Cape atschools, youth groups, and service organisa-tions. The Association of Law Societies has inprinciple agreed to fund the posts of regionalco-ordinators throughout the country. Whenthat takes place, Street Law is likely to takeoff with gusto.

Page 12 of 53 16 March 1988sevC'9a1' The report from the Black Sash (Albanyregion) below illustrates the excitement andjlli~qG's have practical possibilities of these ideas as theysaid they take root in Grahamstown.Would To know your rights in Law and standup for these rights will be the aim of AlbanyWelcome Black Sash Advice Office workers who are,Street Lm studying Street Law as is being disseminatedby the Association of Law Societies of theft26dC'7Jts Z92 Republic of South Africa.their courts. From its base in the Centre for Socio-LegalStudies at the University of Natal, Durban, itis already being taught in more than fiftyNatal schools and has spread to the EasternCape under the umbrella of the RhodesUniversity Law Department.Advice Office workers have attended twoworkshops in Grahamstown and are nowawaiting further literature on: Criminal Law,Juvenile .lustice, Consumer Law, Family"aw, Welfare and Housing Law and E:mploy-ment Law.Familiarity can breed contempt - andconfidence -- the sessions have so farrevealed. Role playing in typical situationshas been a valuable exercise.`1 see our role as teaching people their rightsand to stand up for these rights,' says veteranGrahamstown Advice Office worker, Profes-sor Nancy Charton, who thinks that thisshould be an aim of every advice office.'The Street Law workshops in Grahams-town have attracted school teachers, welfareworkers, representatives of women'sorganisatons and attorneys.Judges have shown interest, according toMr Rob Mid gley, Rhodes Law Lecturer.'Several itidges have said they would welcomeSc I.ziw students in their courts,' he said.Prulcssor David McQuoid-Mason, NatalUniversity law teacher who initiated theproject says, 'Street Law tells people aboutlaw that affects them in their everyday life onthe street.'Every time a person buys something, rentsa house, gets married or divorced or isaccused of a crime he/she comes in contactwith the law.Street Law helps people to understand howthe law works and how it protects people. Italso explains what the law expects people todo in certain situations. It tells them about thekind of legal problems they should watch outfor and how they can solve them.'Many people do not believe that poorpeople renting broken down houses can get acourt order instructing the owner to fix them.hey do not think that people who buycars that do not work properly can force thegarage which sold them to make repairs orrefund their money. Others probably do notbelieve that people assaulted by the police canobtain compensation for their injuries,' saysProfessor McQuoid-Mason.The flavour of Street LawJohn and Peter steal bicycles belonging topeople at their school.The shopkeeper sells them a radio which heknows does not work properly.~.: '' 0 1/1N'= _--n.On their way back to the shop John knocks overan old lady and injures her.On their way into town they ride through a redtraffic light.

Page 13 of 53 March 198b17John is charged with raping a woman in Pretoria.Govan murders his wife in Pietermaritzburg.Peter buys a car from a garage in Johannesburg for 88000. Inbreaks down three days later.In Grahamstown, the programme isalready being introduced in five schools.'The Street Law programme is particularlysignificant here because legal resources arescarce in the outlying areas. It becomes evenmore important that people are made awareof the opportunities that law does provide toptectro , people against the unscrupulousbehaviour of others,' Mr Midgley said.At the same time the educative value ofStreet Law and its effect on improving basicskills must enhance individuals' ability tocope with life's difficulties, he added.Professor Charton said, 'Advice Officeworkers hope to use it to great advantageduring the queues which form while awaitingadvice. This will be an ideal opportunity toteach people their rights.'Information which should be disseminatedwould deal with hire purchase, the Law ofContract and unemployment insurance, sheadded.`Several areas which are coming up shouldbe really helpful to Advice Office workers andthose of us who w ork for GADRA (Grahams-town Area Distress Relief Association),' saidMrs Betty Davenport.Mrs Gail Victor, Guidance Teacher atKingswood College, said the plan was tointroduce Street Law as a life skill in the post-matric bridging year which will be introducedat Kingswood next year. She said,'Meantime1 started with the Standards 9 and 10 boys andgirls. They are very interested. I believe it hasgreat relevance in preparing young people tocope with life.'A significant aspect of the Street Lawworkshops had been the distinctions drawnbetween legal and moral situations. `This hasgreat application indifferent sectors of ourcommunities,' she added.Mr Ken Lemon-Warde, who teaches lifeskills at St Andrew's College and theDiocesan College for Girls, said he regardedStreet Law as an 'all seasons' exercise. `1 shallcertainly slot it in next year, probably, fromthe Std 8 or 15-year-old level,' he added. `I likehegroup participation the role-playingaffords, also the factual information itimparts. Too many of us are ignorant of ourrights as to hire purchase, guarantees and soon,' Mr Lemon-Warde said.The exercise would not only teach peoplenot to accept a situation blindly. it would alsoteach people to be more articulate in certainsituations. 'It leads to critical thinking andcreative problem solving,' he said.Knowlcdge of the law could also helppeople to 'keep their cool' in any givensituation, something very necessary whenthey were involved in accidents, for instance.Teachers from schools for blacks attendedthe first workshop. Black attorneys andstudents have also been present.'

Page 14 of 53 March 1988 21The jurysystem i.r ...bared on theidea thatone shouldbe tried byone's peers.Youth organisations of both the majorpolitical tendencies (CAYCO and AZANYU)became part of the court, which came to beknown as the Nyanga East Youth Brigade.My interviews all tend to suggest that thefounding of the Youth Brigade's court wasnot discussed and approved within the extra-parliamentary movements prior to itscommencement. It was founded on the initia-tive of youths, some of whom were membersof youth organisations of the majord0 1tee logica ndencies (CA YCO (UDF-affiliate) and AZANYU (AZAPO-affiliate)).The evidence points to the strong likelihoodthat CAYCO and AZANYU members didnot join the court with a mandate from theirorganisation, but in their private capacities.Initially therefore, although members ofthe Youth Brigade court thought of them-selves as performing a valuable service to thecommunity, it cannot be said that they wereformally accountable to their respectiveorganisations.At first the majority of people broughtbefore the court were youths, ranging in agefrom 14-30. (The term youth here refers moreto youthfulness in intellectual and culturalstatus, than to age in years.) Any cases thatinvolved adults, or dealt with maritalmatters over which the youths had noauthority, were referred to the local CivicAssociation, or the appropriate body in theprogressive movement.Re-educationThe founding idea which directed the Court'soperations was to discipline deviants byimposing sentences that would entail therendering of a service - either to the victim oftheir offence or to the community as a whole.(For example, by cleaning out someone's yardor helping elderly people paint their houses.)In terms of court procedure the YouthBrigade (ranging from 15-50) would elect fourmembers to officiate in the Court. Thechairman (there were no female members)would preside over proceedings without aright to vote. Other `officials' kept records.Complainants and defendants were thenac tell 1 0. o he hsk d to the I r st 'i's I t , co urt, and t cBrigade members were given an opportunityto ask questions. All Brigade members had avote and had the right to suggest appropriatesentences. Questions of guilt and appropriatesentences were handled by means of votes.Both the youth organisations involved alsoused the court as a forum to recruit deviantsto participate in future courts, and theirrespective youth organisations. In otherwords once disciplined and `re-educated', theformer deviants were invited to become partof the court that would in turn discipline otherden iants.The idea behind the practice of assimilatingformer deviants to the adjudicating structureis an attempt to counteract the alienationcaused by the conventional process of justicewhen a convicted person is sent to prison.Incorporation into the People's Court wasintended to provide the former deviant withthe opportunity of becoming more familiarwith the code of behaviour expected of youthsat the time. In theory, it also gave the moreexperienced members of the Brigade anopportunity to keep an eye on the youngstersand give them some guidance where this wasconsidered appropriate. While this couldperhaps have worked under different circum-stances, it was difficult to apply successfully inthe volatile climate towards the end of 1985.This process may well shock those peoplewhose conception of justice is based onnotions of `objectivity' and 'impartiality'administered by professionals. One shouldhear in mind, however, that informal judicialstructures, of which People's Courts aremerely oiae manifestation, have always hadlay members who apply notions of justicepeculiar to the particular cultural and orlocal circumstances. The jury system issimilarly based on the idea that one should betried by one's peers. rather than by peoplefrom a different race and class. In terms of thisconcept, the jurors apply notions of justice intune with their particular culture.Although in principle these motivationsconformed to the noblest ideals of `re-education', `re-integration' and appropriatesentencing. in practice it didn't work out thatway. What eventually happened was that theconcept of `appropriate' sentences becameladen with other meanings supplied, often asnot, by these former `hooligans'. Sentencesrapidly increased in severity towards Septem-ber-October 1985. It was not unusual for thecOLII-t to sentence someone who had stolen atape-deck to thirty lashes, far in excess of themaximum lashes (seven) in the official courts.Sentences as high as one hundred lashes wereimposed for crimes such as rape and seriousstabbings.While these sentences ~rre extraordinarilysevere, it must be remembered that the moodon the streets was then extremely volatile.People were being shot dead by the `security'forces almost daily. When challenged aboutthe nature and severity of their sentencing.members of the court argued that the 1-Is ofviolence township youth experienced at thehands of the `system' far exceeded the lashesthe People's Courts imposed after both sidesof the story had been heard. Moreover, theyargued that assaults, torture and shootingwere inflicted by the `system' before thevictims were brought to court and charged.The State of Emergency declared in the Capeon 26 October 1985 made it more difficult for

Page 15 of 53 20 March 1988yourstructurescan delivera don't ofilficulties exacerbated by obscure legalbelieve that terminology; theI-,avul absence of legalrepresentation and Icgal aid; alleged policebrutality in eliciting confessions; and prisonsentences with few or no `rehabilitation'programmes: in short, for as long as justice isnot perceived to be done by a substantialsection of our population.ju.rticeto us .,People's CourtsIt is necessary to begin by confronting theallcgat'on, wh I ch the sta te-cont rolled . edia' I(have have donc their part to promote, thatnecklacing is closely associated with thesentences delivered by People's Courts.In my recent research in Cape Town I didnot unco,cr any evidence of necklace killingsby the established People's Courts. The onlyincident of necklacingthat I have come acwith a connection with a People's Court waswhat I would call a revenge killing which tookplace in the following circumstances. AFormer chairman of the I,TC People's Courtwas neckIaced when a group of people, someof whom were victims of his particularlyharsh sentences, caught him alone one day in.lanuary 1986. ~-they subjected him to animpromptu `hearing' which they simplycowencd amongst themselves on thes pot.Apart from this impromptu act, I am notaware of incidents anywhere in South Africain which someone was sentenced to benccklacc<1 by a People's Court.If one attempts to look behind the eye-catching news reports in order to analyse thebackground to People's Courts, one detects amessage which has serious implications forthe Botha government. In essence, townshipicsidcnts have said: We don't believe thatyour structures can deliver justice to us, so wew ill create our own structures. In other words,'our justice is more sensitive to the needs oftownship residents than your justice'. 7 hisamounts to a vote of no-confidence in a,vatcm whose,! udiciary has been held up as amodel of independence and objectivity parexcellence. It is not surprising that the govern-ment seems heat on smashing structureswhich assertLma that pople y benefit fromtaking responsibility for the running of thisaspect o1 their lives.Many courts have been destroyed whentheir members were detained. Currently 48per cent of all detainees in the Eastern Capearc in detention because of their involvementin P'eople's Courts ( Weekly Mail, 20-261Vovcmbcr 197, p. 4, citing Human RightsTrust analysis). In other canes, members havebeen arrested and charged. At first the chargeagainst members of People's Courts wasusually assault. Later, as an appreciation oftheir significance increased, participants werecharged, it' not with murder, with sedition,offences under the Internal Security Act andeven with treason. Some of the assaultcharges were sustained, as were some of thesedition charges. Trials involving allegedoffences under the Internal Security Act,treason and murder (notably the Alexandratrial - referred to on page 1 1) are at the timeof writing still in progress.The increasing severity of the charges is anindication that the government realises theenormous significance of the loss of legiti-macy of its own legal system. It has con-sequently tried to brand the members ofPeople's Courts as criminals and traitors. Inthe case of the Alexandra trialists, who arecharged with treason among other charges,the prosecution has alleged that People'sCourts are part of a revolutionary strategy,the M (Mandela)-plan.Regional differencesThere are substantial regional differences inthe development of people's courts. In theEastern Cape and the Transvaal, courtsappear to have been formed as part of extra-parliamentary structures and have declaredthemselves accountable to the progressivemovements; this does not appear to have beenthe case in the Western Cape.In the Eastern Cape and 'l ransvaal People'sCourts were set up by UDF affiliates, in sometownships in conjunction with local street andarea committees. This has meant thatrepresentatives of political movements,women's groups and youth groups becamepart of the courts.Most People's Courts in South Africa aroseat about the same time as the consumerboycotts of March-August 1985. They dealtwith opportunists who were simply robbingpeople of their shopping bought at `approved'outlets, in the guise of policing the boycott aswell as the boycott breakers. The People'sCourts tried and sentenced these opportunistsand importers. At the same time it is allegedthat conventional policing of the black town-ships by the SAP came to a virtual standstill.The police were allegedly mostly policingPolit I cal matters rather than conventionalcrime. Consequently there was a marked in-crease in housebreaking, robbery, assault andtheft. Another function of People's Courtswas to cope with these violations.In contrast to the development in otherregions the first People's Court in the WesternCape started at the Nyanga Art Centre whereyoung `hooligans' had sawn off electricitypoles, snipped the copper wires and sold themto scrap merchants. This left the Art Centrewithout electricity and the artists crafts-people could not do their work. Somemembers of the Art Centre convened a courtto discipline the youngsters. Members of

Page 16 of 53 March 1988 21The jurysystem is ...bared on theidea thatone shouldbe tried byyouth organisations of both the majorpolitical tendencies (CAYCO and AZANYU)became part of the court, which came to beknown as the Nyanga East Youth Brigade.My interviews all tend to suggest that thefounding of the Youth Brigade's court wasnot discussed and approved within the extra-parliamentary movements prior to itscommencement. It was founded on the initia-O?Ze'.f Peers. five of youths, some of whom were membersof youth organisations of the majorideological tendencies (CAYCO (UDF-affiliate) and AZANYU (AZAPO-affiliate)).The evidence points to the strong likelihoodthat CAYCO and AZANYU members didnot join the court with a mandate from theirorganisation, but in their private capacities.Initially therefore, although members ofthe Youth Brigade court thought of them-selves as performing a valuable service to thecommunity, it cannot be said that they wereformally accountable to their respectiveorganisations.At first the majority of people broughtbefore the court were youths, ranging in agefrom 14-30. (The term youth here refers moreto youthfulness in intellectual and culturalstatus, than to age in years.) Any cases thatinvolved adults, or dealt with maritalmatters over which the youths had noauthority, were referred to the local CivicAssociation, or the appropriate body in theprogressive movement.Re-educationThe founding idea which directed the Court'soperations was to discipline deviants byimposing sentences that would entail therendering of a service- either to the victim oftheir offence or to the community as a whole.(For example, by cleaning out someone's yardor helping elderly people paint their houses.)In terms of court procedure the YouthBrigade (ranging from 15-50) would elect fourmembers to officiate in the Court. Thec"airan (there were no female members)would preside over proceedings without aright to vote. Other `officials' kept records.Complainants and defendants were thenasked to tell their stories to the court, and theBrigade members were gi"en an opportunityto ask questions. All Brigade members had avote and had the right to suggest appropriatesentences. Questions of guilt and appropriatesentences were handled by means of votes.Both the youth organisations involved alsoused the court as a forum to recruit deviantsto participate in future courts, and theirrespective youth organisations. In otherwords once disciplined and `re-educated', theformer deviants were invited to become partof the court that would in turn discipline otherdeviants.The idea behind the practice of assimilatingformer deviants to the adjudicating structureis an attempt to counteract the alienationcaused by the conventional process of justicewhen a convicted person is sent to prison.Incorporation into the People's Court wasintended to provide the former deviant withthe opportunity of becoming more familiarwith the code of behaviour expected of youthsat the time. In theory, it also gave the moreexperienced members of the Brigade anopportunity to keep an eye on the youngstersand give them some guidance where this wasconsidered appropriate. While this couldperhaps have worked under different circum-stances, it was difficult to apply successfully inthe volatile climate towards the end of 1985.This process may well shock those peoplewhose conception of ,justice is based onnotions of `objectivity' and `impartiality'administered by professionals. One shouldbear in mind, however, that informal judicialstructures, of which People's Courts aremerely one manifestation, have always hadlay members who apply notions of justicepeculiar to the particular cultural and orlocal circumstances. The jury system issimilarly based on the idea that one should betried by one's peers, rather than by peoplefrom a different race and class. In terms of thinconcept, the jurors apply notions of justice intune with their particular culture.Although in principle their motivationsconformed to the noblest ideals of `re-education', `re-integration' and appropriatesentencing, in practice it didn't work out thatway. What eventually happened was that theconcept of `appropriate' sentences becameladen with other meanings supplied, often asnot, by these former `hooligans'. Sentencesrapidly increased in severity towards Septem-ber-October 1985. It was not unusual for theL L" to sL'('L 't nt c rice someone who had stolen atape-deck to thirty lashes, far in excess of themaximum lashes (seven) in the official courts.Sentences as high as one hundred lashes wereimposed for crimes such as rape and seriousstabbings.While the>c sentences are extraordinarilysevere, it moat be remembered that the moodon the streets was then extremely volatile.People were being shot dead by the `security'forces almost daily. When challenged aboutthe nature and severity of their sentencing,members of the court argued that the levels ofviolence township youth experienced at thehandy of the 'system' far exceeded the lashesthe People's Courts imposed after both side,of the story had been heard. Moreover, theyargued that assaults, torture and shootingwere inflicted by the 'system' before thevictims were brought to court and charged.The State of Emergency declared in the Capeon 26 October 1985 made it more difficult for

Page 17 of 53 22 March 1988(kt'clop_file nt_cdin, lllZ.1 bedill, t:~l~ll-IllIl72Zt'~ .ft l! pp(ll't forl-c hl'I~t;ade'.rthe Youth Brigade court to operate. They- rtttc a letter to the commanding oli'icer atthe 6ugulctu police station to state theiraimsc,l acting against criminals and vandal.Mztjt~r Burger stamped their letter andtctttrncd it ttt Ihem telling then, to shoo it topttlicentcrt "antittg ttt itttcrlctc vtith tileliti`ad""Vor a ~~hilc. hetucctt Juneand seplenthcr 1985, the 'cttttt t' had secntetltt1 cnjo~ Littitc it lot of ~uppott Irom mcmbcr,cal the community. a~ tltcy tt( tttall_v succeededin reducing the high ct tt;. Late its themy n,h ipa.Suppt~t t 'a' .h`- b~ the rapidlyin, tca,ng nunthet of ca- that vverc broughttt. Although this assctti(ttt is difficult to"i"i'licalk, ift'Ll, knoing1\1to I,II"\ the caws to court, in fact, there~~ e t c ut mangy LilL that the court way d ie idedtnttt I\(tt, and htrtit court, heard ca~e~ untiltalc into the night. and on -kend, Sc\cral~,tltet 1'cttple"S Courts 1crc ,ct up in Ca p('t--Nhtp~ ttt-tr(1~ the end of the scar. Ilte1 ,,till Iii izadc had -oral patrols that actedlilk, ;ttt irttottnal police force. Ihcit pr_tt('c.r. the tt~n~hip street, appear., to ha- hadan impact stn the ~trcet-crime in the area. But,ih.ctltictrt d-loptnen, diminishe(1 the~ntnrttrrit~', "tpport 101 tile Ct)trr1.Ilte lii~t ~\as tltc incrcasingl~ Sc\etc.critcttcc~ tt Irttp()~ed and tftc brutal ntanrtcr ctlthcattc.titti'pick-ttp~dtt,td'. The second ~~t~;t hc-cttlor~ irttpttkc that became p"'a'"tits the coot,. \er~ I-accu.,cd, it ttn~.nt;tna"cd m Imrsuadc the eunlabilit.) to. . ;.-1rrSSi- mo,cmettt and for rdrairtingI~r~tt: .~.;i tlicatmg over ntaltcr~ relalcd tit;t(Ittlt,. I!,; .'ca, glment~ \(crc rc.jectcd b\ theBrigade members in favour o1 a moreimmediate, dramatic and militant style ofrunning the court.At that time it was extremely difficult foryouth organisations such as" CAYCO tointcr\ene nuthoritati\ely for a variety ofreasons. l!rtder the Emergency many act, istsmere either in detention or in hiding, andleadership skills were therefore ,prcad verythinly throughout the township,. Secondly,NYC"O was still trying to pcr~tradc thc~eunaffiliated youths to become part of theirorganisation and thereby -b_ject to ill'discipline and educative programme. Hea\ 5-handed action would have made it moredifficult to recruit neN members through tilecourt. Thirdly, the term 'comrade' 11asappropriated by members o1 the YouthBrigade in a \cry loose uay. In the mood ofthe time, being a comrade signalled being onthe 'right' side, and implied that ttrte'~ actionhere performed in the intere- of the broaderma", of people. Anyone Nho opposed tt',on,,L',a,b,iilgd ri`lo\itl, unpatriotic, andcoul(1 cjt,i1\ be Stthjeeted to 'disciplining'. l etntanv of the Youth Brigade men""" pi"": the rteM recruit, had \en littleLtrt(It't-standing of the hefti, iour ~ihich -t., rc(luir, dof it nrcmhet of progcssi\c organisations.I h ev srmpl~ 'did their ow n thing and claimedto lta- the blessing of progressi-orgar-atiott~."on", ucntlv, some of the (Al ( ()mcmb-. Mtosc political pos ittt~rt~ ~~ctcbeing comptontised b~ dc\clopntettt, tltc~could not accept, wI thdr- Irons tltc youthBrigade court. In tact, sonic of tltctnexpressed relief when the state finally inter-\ettc(I to the running o1 the court.The state's interventionWhat way surprising was that the state didnot inter,cr" lor arch it long time. 'l ire(1i\i,ion~ that the court ~~t~ ctcatirtg ~~itltirtthe community apparentl~ coincided ~~ith theMate", intcrcstS. It -as only its No-mbcr1985, when the court punished members o1the family and friends of it conttttttttit\councillor, that arrest, were cat t icd

Page 18 of 53 March 1988 23The aim wasto constructthe lowestrung of ajudicialhierarchy ...Sogiba family to the Youth Brigade court forabusive and threatening behaviour. Thefamily was summonsed to appear and afterseveral unsuccessful attempts at settling thedispute, and after several warnings issued bythe People's Court to the parties involvedordering them to desist from their slanderousbehaviour, members of the Sogiba familywere brought to court. They refused toacknowledge the court's jurisdiction overthem, and were given 60 lashes for `contemptof court'. The next day 32 members of thecourt were arrested and charged with assault.During 1986, several (but not all) of theother courts that had sprung up in thetownships and squatter areas were alsobroken up by the arrest of their members.Looking back on People's JusticeThis brief history suggests that People'sCourts in the Western Cape can be describedas a misguided and unsuccessful attempt atintroducing People's Justice. Similar-attempts in other regions seem to have beenmore successful before the state clampeddown on them too.In the Eastern Cape, parts of the SouthernCape (notably Bongolethu near Oudtshoorn)and in part of the Transvaal, People's Courtswere run in a far more responsible mannerthan that described in this example. Beingmore closely linked to progressive organ-isations, accountable to them, run by adultsin conjunction with a minority of youthmembers, lacking internal ideological rifts,practising a less punitive form of localjustice,and free from a strong persecutory drift, theywere more responsive to the needs of thoseparticular communities than was the case in.the Western Cape. Where youth organisa-tions had their own disciplinary committees,they confined themselves to hearing casesinvolving breaches of the internal disciplinarycodes. This did not meet with much criticismon the part of the communities in which theywere based.Examples of similar informal structures inthe past were the Isolomzi and the Amavolun-tiya of the 1960s and 1976s. They are only twoof the many alternative `courts' and `policeforces' that residents themselves have organ-ised over the years. Isolomzi - `the eye of thecommunity' - was a group of responsibleand respected residents of Cape townships.They were volunteers who represented thecommunity in matters relating to housing,but their functions were later extended tosettling disputes in a small informal court.The Amavoluntiya (volunteers) were a type ofvigilante force whose focus was to patrol thet0wnshi~ streets at night 'I., order to deterr )bbL,rs and petty criminals from molestingresidents.People's Courts built on these structures innew ways. They were an attempt to createstructures of people's power that would carrySouth Africa through the transition fromapartheid to a non-racial democratic unitarystate. The aim was to construct the lowestrung of a judicial hierarchy in which popularlocal values and norms would be takenseriously. These courts, if they are runresponsibly, could be very well suited tocommunities under pressure from a valuesystem they reject. They enable these Lom-munitics to express values and norms whichare not acknowledged by the dominantgroupings in the society. They have additionalfunctions aboxe those of the conventionalcourts to which we are accustomed. Ideally,there is a very strong educative component inPeople's Courts. The court is intended toserve a dual function: that of conductingcourt procedures as well as organising acommunity.In terms of the N ision which sees People'sCourts as appropriate informal structures forsettling disputes and controlling townshipcrime, residents arc encouraged to becomemembers of the court su that decisions arearrived at by a democratic process, and assuch enforced by the community as a whole,rather than by civil servants. Sentences aredevised so as not to alienate but to sere thecommunity.People whose iews and contact w ithcourts have been influenced and shaped by aWestern mindset would see -eral dangersi hen , nt n People's COLI I ~ 1 1' a I"' kr' I 's. I heof 'objectivity' and independer,ee; the secondis the danger of being accountable to apolitical movement. These fears are notwithout substance, but there are eqriallv validr-eser,ations that can be raised by the work-ings of conventional justice as practised inSouth African courts. Some of these havebeen referred to earlier.South Africa has much to learn fromsituations of compromise 1ouiul in corintriesthat utilise the jur system, where a lormaljudge adjudicates in combination with theappro,ed peers of the aectised. l hose peers:ire held to he more in tortcll with tile realitiesof one's ow n lip ing circumstances than peoplewho are removed from them. 'I his i,especially true ofa society its acutely polarisedas ours.I~he progressive movements will no doubthave taken cognisance of the mistakes madein the establishment and running of people'scourts (particularly in the Western Cape)during 1985-6. When the next opportrrnit~presents itself. to reintroduce them, theirstructure and procedure are likely to reflectthese lessons. OVilfried Scbri'f i.r~t.rc~tlorlccturcr~rt ~bc Inrtitutcof

Page 19 of 53 24March 1988'A stroller is someone who don't .deep by his house - hesleep r in the street. He don't eat by hi.r house - he eats bythe b "n,, A stroller is someone who thinks he ",free. Dou hot Lei ,, zztilzd .r~t~.r. It'.r a lzice zz~tytzcfor'Anoohcr Street'.'l he duality of life on the street shifts between extreme polesof experience. It is a place of refuge fromcircumstances back home and at school. A place which alsoholds the great allure of freedom and adventure in the midstof unending change and spectacle. However, another worldintrudes. It brings with it pain and fear sometimes assuagedby inhalents and drugs bought with the earnings from oddjobs and prostitution.It is believed there are 30 million street children worldwide.There may be 5,000 in South Africa. Most are young boysunder 16 years. A far less visible part of this phenomena arethe small proportion of young girls who adopt this lifestyle.~I here are fascinating parallels between street childrenand the organised youth who ace themselves as fighting thestruggle for liberation. Like them, street children reject theguidance and control of adults and doggedly refuse to bemoulded into their social paueri- Both groups seek and&pen d on the support of their peers and see themselves asthreatened and be seiged by conventional adults and thepolice. oThe opening quotation and photograph r in thin photo e,ayaredra-ij "I'llthe dncaamentution Another Street' on the liver of Cupe 7"own Strollerr.They ure by Jenny Altrchuler, Korta Cbri.rtie and Pam Warne, All photo-graph.r were taken in 1984.o "'ti, (.'ockbtzru Jur other relc-t rzzt iazJoryuatiotz draton Jrozu be rinto rtrcclTop:Schot_rche KloofLeft:In Sea PoilztRight:Cape houa7 City Centre

Page 20 of 53 30 March 1988the national council:a quest for legitimacymary burtonNearly two years ago, in May1986, the government an-nounced proposals to form astatutory national council. This wasclearly designed to counterwidespread rejection of the 1983constitution and the tri-cameralparliament in which black SouthAfricans had no voice at all. Thenew proposals, however, were`rebuffed by all sections of the blackcommunity, from the so-calledmoderate to the so-called radical',as Joyce Harris recounted in SASHAugust 1986.She quoted a definition by MarkSwilling of revolution from above:a process of substantial socialchange that creates new patterns ofIcgitimation and political authoritywithout dismantling existinghierarchies of power, and arguedthat tat is needed instead is aprocess of open and freenegotiation. She concluded that theg-rnment would have to do agreat deal to alter its image andestablish its bona fides before sucha council could succeed.The National Party government,now in office for nearly 40 years,simply has to tin some way tosolve the problem of politicalparticipation for black citizens. Thesuccess of all its plans for nationaland regional government isdc pendenr on the viability of anational council which will work ondrafting another new constitution,and on the smooth functioning ofthe regional services councils, andparticularly the black localauthorities. Only by achieving allthis will it be able to claim to theoutside world that `apartheid isdead' at last.In September 1987, therefore, anamended National Council Bill wastabled in parliament. It was referredto the Standing Committee onConstitutional Affairs, and willprobably be brought beforeparliament again in 1988. We mustpres;ume that in the meantimegovernment representatives aredoing their utmost to canvasssupport for the council. It is in thislight that we must regard the releaseof Mr Govan Mbeki, in spite ofsubsequent restrictions placedupon him, and also the possiblerelease of further well-knownpolitical prisoners. The need toestablish bona fides is also seen inthe move to strengthen goodrelations with ~nkatha by annouc-ing that `in principle' the govern-ment was not opposed to a jointnon-racial legislature for Kwa-Natal. The participation of ChiefMangosuthu Buthelezi in thenational council would be atriumph for the government.Unpacking the BillLet us look at the provisions of the1987 National Council Bill. Itsstated aims are: `to provide forparticipation by all South Africansin the planning and preparation of anew constitutional dispensation;the granting of black South Africancitizens of a voice in the process ofgovernment, in the interim period;and the furtherance of soundrelations among, and the humandignity, right and freedoms of, allSouth African citizens . ...'The council is to consist of:(i) the chief ministers (or theirrepresentatives) of each of the`self-governing territories' (i.e.KwaZulu, Gazankulu, Ka-Ngane, KwaNdebele, Lebowaand Qwaqwa);(ii) nine `directly elected' members.(They themselves, and thosewho are entitled to vote forthem, must be black persons `ofor over the age of 18 who areSouth African citizens residentwithin the limits of theRepublic excluding the self-governing territories'. This ofcourse also excludes the `inde-pendent national states' ofTranskei, Bophuthatswana,Venda and Ciskei , whosesubjects are no longer deemedto be South Africans.) Anelected member may not at anytime have been convicted ofany offence for which asentence was imposed of a 12-month or more imprisonmentwithout the option of a fine -unless he or she has received afree pardon or amnesty, orunless the period of imprison-ment expired at least five yearsbefore.(iii) the state president, the chair-person of the ministers'councils in the three.houses ofparliament, the Minister ofConstitutional Developmentand Planning; possibly othermembers of the cabinet will beappointed by the statepresident.(iv) `not more than 10' otherpersons whom the state presi-dent may nominate.This means that the council couldbe composed of 30 or even moremembers, of whom nine are to be`directly elected' by some ninemillion `entitled voters'. Thenominated members will be chosenby the state president, and there isno provision for suggestions to bemade by any opposition groupings.Even `in the interim period' this isnot a formula calculated to `grant toblack South African citizens a voicein the processes of government'.

Page 21 of 53 March 1988 31Doomed to rejectionThe proposals have been comparedwith the Natives RepresentativeCouncil which was established 50years ago but lasted for only adecade. The 1987 model is equallydoomed to rejection and failurebecause:0 the Bill itself is not the result of aparticipatory drafting processin which all sections of societyare represented; instead it is onceagain a proposal presented bythose in power, to be discussedunder conditions laid down bythe ruling party.o it is based on continued `ownaffairs' or `group' thinking,dividing the South Africanpopulation into artificial andenforced ethnic groupings, thuspreserving the widely rejectedapartheid system.4, it fails to provide for universalfranchise in a common society,and so it cannot fulfill its thirdstated aim of promoting soundrelations, human dignity, rightsand freedoms for all.it perpetuates the distinctionsdrawn between `self-governingterritories', `independent nation-al states' and `the Republic ofSouth Africa';in so doing, it denies basic civilrights to those more than eightmillion people who weredeprived of their South Africancitizenship by the formation ofthe `independent national states',and offers only limited repre-sentation via their chiefministers to residents of `self-governing territories'.The most essential requirement forthe success of any governmentalstructure is the legitimacy which isafforded to it by the consent of thegoverned, and this vital element isclearly absent from the proposednational council.The local authoritiesconnectionLegitimacy and consent are equallynecessary to the correct functioningof regional government structures.It is for this reason that localofficials around the country arestriving to ensure that the blacklocal authorities are seen to beoperational. The black localauthority system was seen by thegovernment as one way in which tocompensate for the absence ofblack representation from the tri-cameral parliament. By contrast, itwas seen by the majority of thepeople as an extension of apartheidand as the state's attempt to co-optfurther junior partners into its planto retain the `existing hierarchies ofpower'. Anger and resistance weredirected at those who accepted thesystem. And in some areas the towncouncils were forced to close down.It would seem that one of theobjectives of the declaration of theState of Emergency was to break upthis resistance, to detain commun-ity leaders and to reinstate localauthorities where `administrators'had had to be appointed to fulfilltheir functions.Normalising administration?At the beginning of 1986 only 18 ofthe 45 town councils in the EasternCape were functioning, but byOctober 1987 all but five wereoperating fully. This is what thegovernment refers to as a return tonormality and stability - but weshould question how it is achieved:In a few local authority areas,the councils are still notoperating and administratorshave been appointed to carry outtheir tasks.In some other townships.administration is by townshipmanagers and staff, responsibledirectly to the regional prov-incial administration.In some townships electionshave reportedly been heldnormally.In yet others, public meetingshave been held at whichproposals are made and theadministrator then appoints thenewly formed council. (But inone township, when a publicmeeting was called by theadministrator to discuss Pro-jects and general matters', notone single resident attended.)These are instances from theEastern Cape, but there must surelybe similar efforts to impose`normality' on townships all overthe country.In some areas the introduction ofinumcipal guards can be seen inpart as an endeavour to support thereinstatement of councillors andthereby to ensure credibility andlegitimacy for the structures.The reports we have receivedabout the election processes givecause for concern over how theelections for the nine members ofthe national council can beexpected to proceed.The outcome of these efforts bythe government to gain much-needed legitimacy for its plan is ofcritical importance. The buildingblocks are being put into place, andthe authorities are clearly intenton erecting the structures. Thegovernment has the power to forcethem to work and is trying to woowider acceptance and to attractparticipants who have credibilityand support.In the short term. this quest forlegitimacy may bear fruit, but in thelong run it will have a bitter taste.l he drafting of a new constitutionwhich will be held in high regard bythe majority of the population, andthus be truly legitimised, requiresthe unhampered participation ofrepresentati-s w ho hay c the clearsupport of nation-w ide constituen-cies.This cannot happen until thegovernment comes to terms w iththe need to:guarantee common citizenshiprights for all South Africans(including those who arepresently designated as belong-ing to Transkei, Bophutha-,d,Is, ,, en and Ciskei);urban political organisations.allow the return of exiles andrelease political prisoners anddetainees so that all may partici-pate;'I lie State of Emergency:t I ~ protect the freedom of the press,freedom of speech and publicassembly, and assiirc the safetyof participants, so that idea, madbe widely debate=d and theelectorate ybe well informed;e agree that negotiations about anew constitution will not beconstrained by existing struc-tures such as the tri-cameralhouses of parliament or theregional services councils andblack local authorities.Only once this has been achievedw ill it be possible to claimiegitimac_v for any new dispen-sation. O

Page 22 of 53 32 March 1988diary of a rural visitbeva runclman7l'c- Black Sa.rh ha.r'traditionally concentrated its work-i7t the nlalor urban centreS, where its menaben-hip i.r-reak.rt. D,.r fine being thinly .stretched, its urbanrc.ro~rz'cc.r and support network.r look- lavi.rh when .Teen.1row I`7e ')er.1pealve of rural conlynZLn212eY.n ~lundrctis of remote illages,Illedgling organisations have11111 placed under siege during the-Ii"es 1~f I.mergency. With no localsupport and few links to the outsideworld, the harshest repression canproceed unmonitored, uncheckedand unchallenged.I he challenge of responding tohuman rights issues in rural areas isso past that it has been impossiblefor the Black Sash, with its currentresources, to cope in any systematic1, wy. The most w'ha ve been able todo is respond, "here possible, tospeeilic icqucsts Iron certain ruralelnllllllnltlev.[)i Bishop and Molly Blackburndid This I(11 Inane years, -,"rigIllral pillages ~~h en their support~~a~ leqt,csted. As public repr~-,entati~es, thc~ did much 1<~cxposehat -Is going Cap,. -c;Ic I . ~L Ic atbecoming aHarc of the need todc\elop our capacity to becomemore "If ecti\e in responding to1 LI rtl issues.This point was driven homeagain recently when I wasDe Aarrequested, at short notice, to join ateam of legal experts andrescarchel:s tr~l~elling through theKllroo and the Eastern Cape to takeall ida\its from assault \ictims.-file trip -is undertaken at therequest of a Cape 'lawn advocateN 111 had been contacted by peoplein se\cr;ll rural townships. This iscane sof the lew ways that isolatedcommunities can bring theirsituation to the attention of LI rban-based organisations. Often thehope of the community rests on asingle phone call that one of itsmembers makes to an urbancontact requesting stlpp(,rt. Oftenthis contact is a lawyer whosereputation has spread.In order to follow up effectivelyon such contact, additional servicesare needed. Increasingly, the BlackSash is being called on to becomepart of this support infrastructure.Our team had four members: anadvocate (Graham Taylor),Willr ied Scharf and Rob Watsonfrom the Legal Education ActionProject (I.GAI') based at the Uni-~crsity of Cape I o'n, s Institute ofCriminology, and I. My job - toassist in taking still cmcnts.Our itinerary included threepoints of call: De Aar, where wewcrr to take statements on allegedcases of assault by the securitypolice; Hofmeyr, to take state-ments on allegations of torture andharassment by the kitskonstabels;and Aberdeen, to take an affidavitfrom the sister of a clergyman whowas killed by a kitskonstabel inJune 1987.We were met by Ernest Mobeki andNom bulelo H 'ithani. They bothaleged that t hey had ~een assaultedIfand tortured by the security police.Ernest still had fresh scars andcomplained of earache. I accom-panied him to the district surgeonto have his wounds noted, whileGraham, Rob and Wilfried calledon the security police to informteh 'm of what we were doing and towarn them that any future allega-tions of assault would elicit asimilar response.The district surgeon seemedreluctant to examine Ernest as hesaid he did not want to go to CapeTown for a court case. However, heeventually agreed and verified thatthe wounds were consistent with theallegations of assault. He alsosurmised that Frnest's ear drumhad burst and intimated that itmight require surgery to repair it.Later that afternoon Wilfriedand Graham managed to lay acharge of criminal assault againsttwo security policemen. The policefailed to conceal their anger, butagreed to take statements from thecomplainants. We managed toobtain copies, which appeared to besatisfactory.HofrneyrOur day in De Aar provided oily aIorctaste of what teas to come inHolmeyr, a tine village north-eastof C radock. The local blacktownship has a population of about3 000, which is several times biggerthan the white `town'. It is a typicalrural illage, with most men andmany able-bodied Nvomen workingas migrant labourers in the majorurban centres. Youth and old folkcare lot- the children.The day ,e spent there passed ina haze of heat and exhaustion as wetook statement alter statement,telling of random beatings, torture.harassment and the brutality, of thekitskonstabcls. Although "e"experienced none of this directly, it~~as harrowing merely to take thestatements. It became,pparent thatthe SAP in Hol-rr ~erc refusingto accept charges residents wishedto lay against the kitskonstabels.Far from establishing law andorder, it seemed that the kits-

Page 23 of 53 March 1988 33konstabels were responsible forenforcing a reign of terror andofficial anarchy in the township.The people were frightened, butdeeply grateful that we had come.While we were there we had twovisits from the SAP - the first toask what we were doing and thesecond to take our names andaddresses. As we were there withGraham Taylor, who had beeninstructed by a law firm, there wasnothing they could do to stop us.We left that afternoon andstopped at the police station to tellthe police we would be returning.We were very keen to protect thepeople we had been consulting. Wefeared they might be exposed toretribution if we left withoutmaking it clear that we would bemonitoring developments.Continuity is one of the mostimportant~aspects of rural work. Asingle fly-by-night visit can oftenleave a community more vulnerablethan before.The next day we went to Crad-ock, where we spent our timesorting out the statements andfinding those most suitable for affi-davits. Late that afternoon wedrove back to Hofmeyr so that theaffidavits could be signed andattested.We arrived there that evening tobe told that the kitskonstabels hadopened fire on children and youth,between the ages of 12 and 24, theprevious night. We saw two of theinjured. Another five had beentaken to hospital in Tarkastad --far enough away to be out of reach.The two injured children whoremained behind were 14 years old.We took photographs of theirinjuries, which are published here.The girl had about 110 pelletwounds. We counted them asaccurately as we could. She hadsome open slashes on her face thatwere still oozing blood. She hadbeen shot from behind. I took herhands. They were damp and hot.She was clearly ill. It is difficult todescribe the sense of hopelessnessand desolation I felt in thatsituation. Yet the people retainedtheir resolve, getting on with thetasks at hand in an intrepid,disciplined way. 1 was moved anddeeply impressed by the feeling ofcamaraderie we felt as we workedtogether by the light of the lamp.It seemed clear that the assaultThir 14ycar-ld Hofyueg,r,,irl had,bout 710 pellet a cound., after being firedon by kitrkon.rtabeh.earlier that day was connected toour visit. While beating one of thechildren, a kitskonstabel had asked:`Where are your protectors now?'This raised for us a very realquestion of whether such visits tothese isolated communities areappropriate. After thinkingthrough the issue, we were satisfiedthat the beatings and assaultswould have continued uncheckedhad we not come. And the con-tinuing assaults had established,beyond doubt, a case for an urgentinterd ict.Late that night, feeling drainedand emotionally battered, we left todrive to Aberdeen, where we had totake a statement from the sister ofRev. Boy Jantjies, who was shotdead there by the kitskonstabels inJune.AberdeenWhile we were there, peoplerepeatedly told us that kits-konstabels were frequently drunkon duty - something that we wereabout to experience ourselves.We were waiting in the van, I inthe driver's seat, when a voice close-by attracted my attention. I turnedto look out of the window and washit by alcohol fumes. About fivekitskonstabels had surrounded thean. They were armed, nervous andaggressive and two of them werevery obviously drunk. Despite thetension, Rob, Wilfried and Grahamasked them for their names. I-hekitskonstabels refused to respond.The situation was eventuallydefused when a man in plainclothes, who produced a SouthAfrican Police identity card, askedthe kitskonstabels to leave. Laterwe obtained the names of the drunkkit skonstabels from onlookers.We decided to follow up thisincident and, it being a Sunday, wetracked the Station Commander ofthe SAP in Aberdeen to the localchurch. He sent for the drunk kits-konstabelsand we saw them havingtheir guns removed before beingLocked up in a cell. The d' -letsurgeon established that they wereindeed drunk.The Station Commander, afterchecking with his superiors inMiddelburg, preferred to deal withthe matter internally instead oflaying a charge. Graham and Wiltwere reluctant to press for a chargea5 it would have meant either orboth of them making several tripsto Aberdeen to testify agauist thekitskonstabels.We left Aberdeen and headed forhome. It had be,., a distressingvisit.The following Meek Graham andRob worked hard to prepare thecourt papers and Grahameventually 11- to Grahamstown topetition the court for an urgentinterdict to restrain thekitskonstabels from assaulting theresidents of Hotmey'r. A temporaryinterdict ~4as granted on behalf ofthe applicants (not the wholecommunity) A further 14 dayswere granted for both sides toprepare further evidence.

Page 24 of 53 34 March 1988the battle fornarreaqualandlala steyn0l(I"U_""'.1_lI1,11 CowC'.f 1?7.1/rang'

Page 25 of 53 March 1988 35I1(,Z madeprmi,ion ~or,cttlcmcnt,chcmes wherehv the rc,crw~~ould be lurited into re,identiala.nd agricultural lone,. with thecllcct tlttlt the mttj(trit~ of P,-antlarmer, "ould be lorced to Bc inte,idcmial area, and he deniedacct t.. land.Re,ident, travelled to CapeI 1111 tt in ALIgtl,t last _~ettr tot telltltcir ,to-'~c hna ,mall patch of ztctttltd ~\I,ilc tltc1- \\ho hiic camp, aic I,ti\ilITT"cd.'(>tlr ,tack i, arhitnltil~ im-pottndcd it they arc iouttd on acamp. I he impounding Ice, tltchigh and impouItdittz i, 11, cloneaccording to 'I" "platio,". m."',te,ident, c~Ittttctt ;tllord to hu~ their,tack hack imd it i, then ,ctld h\ theMttn ttt_ement t3otttci.'Ihcic arc 47 camp, in 1 cliclun-tein, ol ,hich 30 1--l toindi~ idttal, in lyli4. I o tlttttlii~ 1t acn111, -11 117t;c,l etlml,,_ I hercmainin, I(,

Page 26 of 53 36 March 1988ResistanceResidents have tried various waysof opposing the camp system. Theyhave continually expressed theirrejection of it to the localManagement Boards by addressingpetitions to them and voting againstthe system at annual generalmeetings. They have personallygone to see Mr David Curry, theMinister of the Department ofLocal Administration, Housingand Agriculture.111 ... ri~be C"rry visit ed` w r "'~ b "Karakham s here a crowd wwanted to discuss the land issuewith him was waiting. But peoplesay they were chased away `likedogs'. He was prepared to talk onlyto the Management Board and asmall group of dissatisfied resi-dents.In September 1986, after requestsfrom residents a Committee ofInquire was appointed by Curry toin, estigate the land issue inEeliefontein. Many residents gavee, ilence to the Committee wherethcv presented their grievances astlic~ had done before to local,regional and central government.When the Committee's reportc~entually became public late thisVicar residents were shocked by itsfindings and blatant racism.I he report recommends that theland not be returned to the people.It states: `The division of land intofarming units is an inalienable right(.L,ildr, n /rv~rrr I~nurttirr-itl1/rc Lclic-/rtll~ctlll~cJCl~c,Lt.Iri,t0//cc t tt'~tlcr~rrtt1/~c r)rdtzit taf,uhttb n/trtt~ crJtc-rI.UU p.tu.of all those residents who areconcerned about the developmentof the area ...' It does not deny thatmany `burgers' reject the system butexplains this away by labellingthem backward and traditional.Their inability to accept this systemis because of their `inherently weakcharacter ... including their lazinessand alcoholic tendencies.'The Committee states that thecommunal system has led to over-grazing and will lead to continuedpoverty. Although there aredefinite signs of overgrazing, UCTbotanist, Tim Huffman, states thatit has never been properlyresearched or proven scientificallythat this was caused by thecommunal system of grazing. Hestates that `it may well be shown infact that the trek system Per .re isnot the cause of veld degradation inthe region, and with reduced stocknumbers veld improvement maywell be superior under this system.'The Committee report has beenrejected for a number of reasons byLeliefontein residents. One of theseis that the most important objec-tions of the `burgers' have beenomitted. FmorPesa mple, they objectthat `the aare illegal becausethe "burgers" didn't give theirpermission. They were notconsulted in the matter.'After all the official channels.had been closed resdents ofLeliefontein launched an applica-tion in July 1987 for an orderdeclaring that they were wrongfullydeprived of their land and orderingMinister Curry to restore it to them.The case will be heard in March1988.Early in 1987 residents organ-ised themselves into committees tofight for their land. Since the campsystem was instituted, residentshave refused to accept this systemand some have continued to sowtheir wheat on their sowing plot forwhich they have letters of allocationven though it falls inside a camp.thers have continued to allowtheir stock to graze in land nowleased by an individual. Many ofthem have had their animalsimpounded or have been visited bythe police. But they have refused tomove off land which they havealways considered to be theirs.Threatened removalFor residents in the Leliefonteinreserve a further threat hangs overtheir heads. In 1977 residents in theseven small settlements which areknown as `buitestasies' were told tomove within the year to the tworecognised towns of Karakhamsand Leliefontein. For the `burgers'this would mean the end of theirlivelihood. In the towns therewould not possibly be enough spacefor everyone's goats, sheep anddonkeys and their sowing plotswould be too far away.Unemployment is high inNamaqualand where 64 per cent ofthe population is dependent onthe income generated by theremaining 36 percent. For manypeople who work on the diamondor copper mines, roads or whitefarms their land is a safeguardagainst total impoverishmentduring periods of unemployment.A few goats and sheep are kept tosubsidise their income. A forcedmove of this nature could only leadto one thing - a rural slum.Residents ignored the 1977notice and have refused to movealthough they have constantly beentold to. The water supply in the`buitestasies' is extremely poor andall houses arc built `at own risk'.7-he report of the Committee ofInquiry makes it clear that the ideato move residents has not beendropped. Residents realise that ifthey lose their battle to regainaccess to their land which is deniedby the `economic units' the next stepwill be a forced removal of all the`buitestasies'. Against these oddsthey refuse to move because `... ourlivelihood is from the land and notin a town. We don't want to becomesquatters.'

Page 27 of 53 March 1988 37'Ek hou horn sowant ek will daargeskiet word''I'm keeping my landbecause I want to beshot there.'OOM ANDRIES and TannieMagrieta Nero live in Tweerivierwith their ten children. Althoughoo m Andries was born in Twee-rivier, he worked as a young manin Kamieskroon saving moneyuntil he had enough to come andlive off the land in Tweerivier in1972. He then took over hisfather's sowing rights at K erk-bosplaat.From this time he livedoff the land with stock and dry-land wheat farming.In October 1985 Mr AlbertusSmit, a school teacher inKarakhams, hired a camp. OomAndries's sowing plot and thekI . 'I t for his stockraa he had blie inside this camp. So do thesowing plots of eight otherfamilies. Because he saw thisland as his, he continued to useit. When he ploughed and sowedAlberttts Smit laid a charge oftrespass against him. This chargewas withdrawn in court.Smit then twice took OomAndries's five donkeys, which hekept in a kraal on `his' land, tothe pound in Kharkhams. Bothtimes, Oom Andries managed toget them back, although the"L "'rid time they were im-pounded they stayed in thepound for a month. While in thepound they `ate a lot of fodder'for which he had to pay. SmitDoer Andr-ic:r Nern, of 7ioeerinier in the Leliefontein Roc, r c. itoucbrrr hi, a hc-jreld, ul~ic% lie refrrueo to give rrp even tburr,Llr it aou, joll.~ in okmup' hircc! h,took his donkeys a third time,but he was not allowed to get tothe pound. A group fromTweerivier chased after him andtook the donkeys back.Although Smit apparentlyreported this to the police theydid not react.During the night of 1 June1986 all of Oom Andries's 35stock including two valuablerams were impounded. Theywere taken out of his kraal, partof which was driven over by abakkie. Although this kraal wasin the land recently allocated toSmit, Owm Andries claims thathe still has a right to the land andsaw the taking of his stock astheft.He thus laid a charge of theftat the police station inKarakhams. When they had notreacted after eight days he wentto Springbok police station tocomplain. The police came toinvestigate the matter in Twee-rivier the next day. His positionwas that the stock were his and inhis kraal and thus Smit had noright to impound them. Smit onthe other hand said that thestock were illegally on his land.Oom Andries and some of hisfriends then went to the pound toget the stock. The pound masterrefused to release them andcalled the police in Springbok.Alter the police, the poundmaster and a member of theRaa d had discussed the matter inprivate they told Oom Andriesthat he could not get his stock.On v isiting the police in Spring-bok Oom And.- ies teas told tocell his remaining stock. All hisimpounded stock was then ,oldby the pound master.Although he lout all his stockhe did not give up. It was time toprepare the land for ,owing~xhcat. Although his donkeyswere ,till in the pound at thistnILi , other residents helped hima, isJ,d they ploughed hiot in Smit~s camp. Part of hiscart teas stolen but returned bythe police after an attorney MrBurger, who vas acting t' (,!- thLl.eliefontein residents duringthis time, phoned the police tocomplain.Still today theycontinue,owing, but keep the donkeysnearer to home these days tokeep an eye on them to makesure they are not 'stolen anothertime. C~lcllcl StG'j'?2Su,-pliis PeopleP?'o jeCt

Page 28 of 53 38 March 1988more tributes to the pioneersDEFEND THE CONSTITUTION%'hi, 1956 c~rrtur,n by ~iza~aer na,rkr the occu.rion when the Bluck S,rh(then the Won-', Defence of theCon.rtitution League) .staged a stand which encircled the Houses ofParliament.N'ot'czlll>c'1' l c)h'7 i.r.lttc'rc r1'ccl lu .Iclltlic !/7c'~71(711cCI;I U~ ~l7C I1'clll.fl'clcll,l~ri~ll and l:~l.rtcr?l G~l~c'.Ik c c u??l~7/cic ll_7e .rc'17c'i h-'~hljilt~ lrthtllc lu 117o."'~) I (I ll C'C' 1'.1 Il 'l7 r7 b ,g c171 Il 'rl rK-il" 117c' political g1'-udrr)trlh of t/7c Hvlicltlot.rHollcl?lcl nlunutcliu.r. 7%eBlack Scl.rh. and tl_7c (clP'l~c'.1'I c'?'?7 R C'~' I U?Z c'.f~)c'C Iclll j'i.r hcclt'iljtlzdc'hlec! Icy I/7c'?!lthe timeof theinsigniafreda margaret bateThere is a cairn in the main streetof Simon's Town erected by ourbranch of the Black Sash as areminder to others of an infamousact --- the forced removal of`coloured' people from Simon'sTown on 6 September 1967.Exactly 20 years later at 9 a.m. on aSunday morning our chairlady andsix other members oft he False Baybranch laid a wreath at this cairn,reaffirmed our dedication and

Page 29 of 53 Mrs- ,')8.S 39stood for a minute in silence.One can think back and reli'e agreat deal in a minute's silence, andmy mind went back 35 years to ourbeginning, through the variedexperiences I've been part of -many glad and proud, but thegreater part of them humiliating,horrible and degrading, exper-iences inflicted upon a section ofour fellow countrymen for reasonsit is impossible to understand.It was in defence of these peopleand the dignity of human beingsthat the Black Sash, then theWomen's Defence of the Con-stitution League, began its missionwith a march of protest. There were'about 2 000 - 3 000 of us in thatmarch to the City Hall led by asmall woman beating a slow marchon a drum. We had started! herewere branches in many suburbs andtowns; we signed thousands of peti-tions, and our leaders, followed byabout 800 of us, presented them tothe government. What a hot, longwalk that was up the incline to then. Uon Buildings.Drtring this time we had noinsignia - and at the meeting todiscuss. this there was hilarity at thesuggestion we all wore black -dress, shoes, the I, t. Another ideawas for us to wear black gowns -but it was felt that would cause evenmore confusion if we had to protestoi ~s i. c universities. It wasI ,,facetiously suggested (by me infact!) that we `use something like anOrder of the Garter - this wasclaimed to be "JUST what we arelooking for!" It turned out to be myown private little claim to fame! Wespent two of the coldest nights 1have ever experienced sleepingoutside the Union Buildings- anddid our vigils at hourly intervals.1-he following recollections arejust flashes brought to mindstanding in front of the Cairn ofRemembrance:The biggest and most impressiveoffensive we launched was ourdescent upon parliament! We leftJohannesburg in a cavalcade ofcAlan Paton or- said,"Belie\ crs in democracy m~t~ besilenced but their ideas treeimperishable.'" 'I lie Black Sashwas born out of the need fordeniocracv - vie dare not all-ourselves to be silenced.westerncapetrailblazersphilippa taylorto do so on the grounds of hay rnejoined the Black Sash in 1955.Using this as a cut-off point hasallowed many remarkable pioneerto escape our net. ?slot only thosewho joined later, but others hoeither regard their working years asunnewsworthy or have declined tofeature here for personal reasons.We regret if we didn't prod hardenough.Our readers would havebenefitted from hearing more aboutMavis Orpen, quiet inspirationto her co-workers; Norah Hen-shi[wood, (pictured on page 43 at86 years) facilitator in success-Advice Offices; Moira Hender-son, juggler of multiple commit-ments besides Dependants'Conference; and Molly Peter-son, moving spirit of the past, ~ horecently returned to Greyton afteryears in England.There are others, better or lesserknown and not mentioned here.who have given all they could intheir personal circumstances. Wehonour "ll pioneers forestablishing the base on which webuild.Many of the pioneers ~-horesponded have recalled the days of`haunting'. To understand the sig-nificance of this form of protest inthe context oft he 1950s, it must beremembered that women whoopenly and publicly expressed theirpolitical opinions were sociallyfrowned upon. It took a specialkind of courage and conviction tostand at stations, airports, andalong roadsides in order to maketheir political protest felt.For thos of us who have foundthe experience 0 f taking the

Page 30 of 53 40 March 1988position of branch chair after oneyear of membership daunting, it's asalutary reminder to hear of thesituation in which one early pioneerfound herself.Evelyn West has been a power-ful but low-key presence in theformation of the False Bay branchwhere she unexpectedly foundherself taking on a position ofresponsibility.`I ATTENDED my first Black Sashmeeting in Fish Hoek, by invita-tion, in 1955, and was electedbranch chair! I remember MollyPetersen's startled, controlledreaction. It wasn't advisable, butthe gap had to be filled. I was anexperienced committee woman, afounder member of the LiberalParty, and 1 learned quickly - aswe all did.`Apart from committee meetingsin my home, we held open meetingsin a Fish Hoek hotel. One of ourfirst guest speakers was ThomasNgwanya, who introduced himselfas an ex-Cape '7 own skolly! Hemoved all of us. For most of thepeople present this was the firstcontact with a black man who wasnot an employee. About eight yearsago when 1 organised visits to('ro'sroads through a local churchIlollc~ing a Merge meeting), formost pe<~ple this was still their firstsocial contact with blacks.'I hrce more random memories: ameeting in Noel Robb's home,where an address by Chief AlbertLuthuli was followed by an in~orm-al discussion -- unforgettable. In1957, following ArchbishopGeoffrey Clayton's death, after thewriting of his historic letterregarding the `church clause' in theNative Laws Amendment Bill,Black Sash members were demon-strating in Cape I-own. A manapproached us and said, "Yourleader lies there, where you willshortly join him, and we will betrampled into the mud before wegive the black man an inch."`And then the lighter side. Apolice car screeched to a halt at thefoot of Government Avenue, wherea lone Sash member stood in pro-test. ',,,,,at of us were in the wingsto show support and to share in thestand. I he Police officer took outhis walkie-talkie. (I think - evenSashers have lapses of memory.)What I remember clearly is DesireeBerman sauntering over to himsaying, "Are you calling upreinforcements?".'Nan Naggs has been described asa caring and outgoing person whocan be relied upon to respondpositively to any request madeupon her time or energy. She hascontinually declined to take a highprofile role but has made herpresence felt during her many yearsof membership.`MOST PROM WENT in my memoriesis the outstanding leadership wehave had. I would like to pay tributeto those dedicated, able womenwho have enabled us `ordinaries' toNan Naggtkeep at it over the years. My asso-ciation with the Black Sash hasgiven me an added dimension andawareness which I value greatly.`I joined in Elgin as a foundermember and remember well themonthly journey into iown forRegional meetings at the CecilHotc'I`1 was a member of False Bayafter that for a short while, thenClaremont and finally Rosebanksince the 1960s. What an awesomehunch the `pink' Rosebank mem-bers were! Three ex-NationalCouncil of Women, the NationalChair amongst them and all thoseacademics -- very good for a littlecountry bumpkin.`I can remember battling againstgiggles at S'bosch on a `haunt' (aProtest stand to embarrass cabinetministers) when we were wrappedin yards of toilet paper by jeering(but polite) students.`Another memory, riding by biketo Athlone bridge where theoriginal Advice Office was. Thesand over the Common was sothick in summer I'd have to walkand push.`Many years of "book-stall" too-- our diningroom lined withcartons of fascinating finds. Thosewere the days of first edition.Furious activity as Novemberapproached - bags, aprons andcushions being churned out for themorning market.`I feel privileged to have beenassociated with such a wonderfulgroup of women.'Eulalie Stott was once describedas being `to the left of everyone else'.A founder member of the LiberalParty, she joined the Black Sash in1955, where she met `the nicestbunch of women I've ever known'.`What is morally wrong cannotbe politically right,' said MollyPetersen, who taught her so muchas did Peggy Roberts, who hadmuch political experience. Twopeople to whom these early 'trailblazers' were able to turn for adviceand help were Donald Molten o,QC, and Prot'. Ben Beinart.One of Eulalie's innovations wasa monthly dinner to which variouspolitical figures from the black and'loured community were invited.0'The objective was to foster contact.The Black Sash was earning areputation which was making itunwise to meet in public.She was also active in fightingearly forced removals under theGroup Areidis Act. With guidancefrom Donald Molteno, she used tovisit an area under threat, offersupport and organise resistancewhere it was requested. This tookher to Somerset West, Arniston andSimon's Town.Eulalie recounted how the adviceoffice came into being.'Amy Richtown phoned me oneFriday afternoon to say that therewere I H African women who hadbeen in Langa Court on pass lawoffences. A further 28 womenmembers of the ANC had come tosupport them and were alsoarrested. Many of them had tinybabies with them and needed

Page 31 of 53 March 1988 41nappies, baby food and milk.suggested that we get bail for them.The bail was ten pounds each. Inthose days, that was a lot of money.So, at the Black Sash meeting onthe Monday morning, I asked thatwe start the bail fund. It was finallyagreed upon, a n the advice officec s dt a n-in Alh 'o no wa s arted to admii ster, e fund. I have never wo rkedthin the advice office for the reasonthat for the last 30 years I've had myown advice office at my front door,sometimes seeing as many as 100people per week. Mrs Trewartha,who recently turned 90, used to helpas my interpreter.'In 1961, while she was nationalpresident, Eulahe became a towncouncillor and had little free time tocontinue her active participation inthe organisation. She does stillhowever, host the Claremontbranch annual general meeting, tokeep in touch.She has done much to shape thepolicy and direction of the BlackSash in the Cape, and whiledescribing herself as a traveller andno longer a participant, she stillsucceeds in making her presencefelt.Dorothy Hacking, veteran ofdemonstrations, campaigns anddogged hard work in both Johan-nesburg and Cape Town, haswritten about what the Black Sashhas meant to her.`FOR MYSELF, 77 years old and 32years a Black Sash member, 1 knowthat I am deeply grateful fort he in-fluence that the Black Sash has hadon my life. It has kept me aware ofwhat was happening in our country,battered my conscience, furtheredmy education in things political,social and civic and put unfamiliar,sometimes alarming jobs on myplate which Is imply had to learn as1 went along doing them. I havefound companionship and acontinuity of purpose which was allthe more valuable when so muchelse in the country was disintegrat-ing. As a result of Sash nudging 1have branched into other activities,indeed, I have yet to meet a Sashmember who worked only withinthe Black Sash!`When 1 look back to 1955 whenthe Black Sash was launched andwhen 1 consider events in SouthAfrica during the Inter- ing years,1 it seems to me a near miracle thatthe organisation is alive and welltoday. By all the laws of probabilityit should have been long forgottenor remembered only as a nine days'wonder of the late fifties; a short-lived, gallant attempt to keep the`Coloureds' on the voters' roll thatended in failure. But the Black Sashsurvived that failure and manyothers -- thanks to the hard core ina shrinking membership who defiedsuggestions that it was time to packup.`The Black Sash has managed toput down deep roots, weather thestorms and grow into theorganisation that we know now. AsJean Sinclair pointed out then, ifour aim was to oppose apartheidwe had better stay together for "weDorothy Hackinghad a long row to hoe". We neverimagined that we should be hoeingthe same row 30 years later or that anew generation of Black Sashwomen would be rallying to thetask in ever more menacingpolitical circumstances to see thatthe row was howed to the very end.'Molly Forsyth, still going strongin Somerset West, responds.`Ml' MEMORIES of the early days ofthe Black Sash are really o1 thevarious `stands' and not the meet-ings, which out here at Somer-set West were mainly organised bythe kite valuable Mrs Cornish_Bowden she also organised our`atands'. I remember standing onthe islands of our main street andtrying to look severe when greetedcheerily by acquaintances passingby in cars. There was onememorable stand before theHuseso , of Parliament with all thenotables of the day passing the lineof brave and dedicated womenstanding against the railings anddown Adderley Street, when muchto my shock the organiser suddenlysaid "You are tall, you can carry thedisplay boards".`But these times were fun too, andwe all shared a keen determination.Most of us are old women now andmany have passed on, but the goodwork goes on and tough standingdays are over. 1 still feel proud tobelong and bless you all and thework you are so faithfully doing.'Lily Herbstein is known to manyof us for her untiring efforts infundraising. She has run the , on-ns ' , c -ning. s.eur ,oi . orner at the mo Imarket for many yearn and Haschair of False Bay branch untilfailing health forced her to resignfrom that position.`t JOINED the Black Sash in its earlydays and started working in theadvice office in 1961.ome the stands and the ad v imoffice were the moat importantaspects of this organi,atiun. Iremember a male friend saying osheer admiration, -I he Black Sashwill be remembered in the RSA f<"rever!" Needless to say, that i, hums Iand countless others feel today ! I,the days when the Sash teas not a~restricted in holding outduoomeetings and stands as it is atpresent, we stood and had meet ing,in public. Naturally, we mere notalways admired. It was a sad day forme when 1 had to stop my weeklyday at the office and I almavs shallremember our ZI wonderful intcr_prefers, _cItie lindi and Day idViii. David had a remarkablememory and he and Mrs Malinditoo, were always most helpfulregarding the background of manyof the people who came to us Ioradvice.'1-our of us from the False Baybranch worked at the office everyTuesday for many year, (I'~ggyGrant, Vera Kirkwood, MavisThorne and myself). My greatregret is that had 1 knoll n that I wasgoing to work there for over 20years (with breaks) I mould have

Page 32 of 53 42 March 1988certainly tried to learn the Xhosalanguage.'Adele Keen remembers theRosebank branch in its early days.She joined the Black Sash in 1955.`ONE DAY, soon after the birth of mythird baby, I had a telephone callfrom Nancy Day - she told meabout the idea of a `women'sdefence of the constitution league'.This was when the Nationalistgovernment was packing the senatein order to force the colouredpeople off the voters' roll. I said tomyself "it's obvious that I will haveto join this",- although I have neverbeen a great one for committees andso forth.`I went to the first meeting, andthey made me a treasurer! MrsWillis at Simon 's Town used tocme and vet ou r books regularly.o IMany of my fellow members werehighl~ articulate, interesting andwell informed people. Rosebankwas regarded as an `intellectual'blanch. At that time it was thoughtthat il we were all voters, we wouldcarry more clout, so the member-ship was restricted to those eligibleto vote. .hat meant in effect that itwas all white. This idea was debatedII many years in the Black Sash,and eventually the doors wereopene to all. But by that time veryfbl~ew acl or coloured women wereinterested, and they formed theirown protest groups. The vagaries ofour history meant a missed oppor-tunity of being non-racial.'In 1959 we had to go to live inDurban and I joined the Black Sashthere. We got back in 1974 and Iwent to Rosebank branch again.Nan Knaggs (who had moved fromE:Igin) was now chair. I becamesecretary. 1 always hated having to"pose myself to publicity, but Inever missed a stand. In the earlydays we did not all have posters,and 1 always campaigned to havethese. so that people mould knowwhat we were standing for. Ithought this was much moresensible than just `haunting' theministers with out- black sashes.`Later Ros ebank membershipdwindled and we were almost takenover by Rondebosch. However, agreat influx took place last year andnow there is competition for who isgoing to stand!`Many interested groups havebeen formed and advice officesestablished in country districts. TheBlack Sash has changed, but inways that are good.'Ruth Cosser is currently anactive member of the False Baybranch. She shares some of herrecollections.`IT SEEMS a lifetime since I wasphoned by a friend one morning inPinelands to come to a meeting andjoin in a women's protest againstthe rape of the constitution. Weheard of Ruth Foley's and JeanSinclair's plans in Johannesburg,and from that morning meeting, thePinelands branch of the Black Sashwas formed. Membership grewrapidly, especially with thepublicity given to the marches andstands throughout South Africa.The stands in Johannesburg,Durban and Stellenbosch weresabotaged by disruptive peopleletting off crackers to distract the`standers'. Our most successfulmarch was up Adderley Streetcarrying the Black Sash-draped`Constitution Book'.`We stood in large numbers inthose days, mainly outside theHouses of Parliament and at theairport and railway station. Wegave members of the Nationalistgovernment a very cool welcome toCape Town, leaving them in nodoubt as to what the women of theBlack Sash thought of theirattempts to get the coloured peopleoff the common roll.`We had an all-night standoutside the House, against therailings, while the debate wasnearing its climax, and taking partin this stand was a large convoy ofmembers from all over the country.Despite the dedication andseriousness of the event there weresome amusing incidents. A numberof youths draped in toilet paperparaded up and down the road infront of us. We were terrified ofbeing poked in the behind with hat-pins (do our younger membersknow what hatpins are?). Althoughwe heard giggling and movement inthe gardens behind the railings,those in our vicinity came outunscathed.`Our membership consistedmainly of ordinary housewives,indignant and heartsore at whatwas happening to our country. Inmy opinion, our bravest and mostenterprising venture was to invadethe senate in pairs, ask for inter-views with the newly-appointedsenators who had been put there toget the act passed, and ask them tovote against it. We did manage tosee a few senators and, speaking formyself and my co-worker, we werereceived courteously and hadinteresting discussions but, ofCrse, tgot nowher01 le South Africa temporarilyin 1961, but now I'm back and mostI mp,essed with t he growth of the'Black Sash and the quality of themembers, many, of whom are youngprofessional women, who are doingan excellent job despite theircommitments in their homes.'Madelaine Parfitt's recollec-tions of the Black Sash in the earlydays at Somerset West are ones oftotal dedication and enthusiasm.`THOSE WERE exciting days as wetook part in numerous stands and`haunts' and went out to severalcountry towns, trying to get theminterested in the movement andencouraging them to start a branchof their own. One town in particularstands out in my memory and thatwas Bredasdorp, where after hold-ing a meeting, standing for half anhour, getting no response what-soever except a few hostile looks,we went to a hotel for lunch. There,to our amazement and delight, wewere shown to a table decoratedwith beautiful floral arrangements

Page 33 of 53 March 1988 43and a large placard in the centrewith the words "Welcome BlackSash" - very heartening andencouraging!`Another vivid recollection is ofthe huge convoy of members fromall four provinces heading for CapeTown to protest against the SenateAct and spending the weekend atStellenbosch to have a rest aftertheir long arduous journeys. Ourbranch was asked to provideaccommodation for, I think, 50pe . T prolc~ithisa, tved a problem toop hebegin h, , Black lash wasnot well-known in those days andpeople, husbands in particular,were loathe to give up a weekend toentertain strange, `crazy' women.However, they very soon openedte hearts and mes andh ir 0 theirhospitality was absolutely wonder-ful. A very happy and interestingtwo days was spent hearing abouttheir trek down and also meeting upwith old friends from all over thecountry.`1 will never forget the thrill ofleading our branch in convoy withall the others through cheeringcrowds lining the streets of CapeTown on that memorable Mondaymorning in February 1956.`Yes, those were good old daysand 1 am delighted to know that theSomerset West branch has beenrevived and I wish it every success.'Cecile Newberry proudly givesher age as 87, the same as the QueenMother, celebrating her birthday inthe same month.`WHEN MACMILLAN was in SouthAC nfriL~a;.oa,r d pa ' ssed throughoFishHoek imon s Town, I sto d onthe Main Road near the station --wearing my sash of course!`We were a small community andmost of the ladies 1 knew are nolonger alive. 1 still belong to theBlack Sash, but due to age anddeafness, 1 no longer attend meet-ings. But 1 do enjoy the magazines.''People convinced against theirwill, live to think the .came way.mill.'This quotation, used by NoelRobb, in some ways characterisesher attitude of persuasion asopposed to confrontation. She isdescribed as indomitable -she getsup and acts and never gives up.When travelling through Khaye-litsha in recent troubled times, Noelwas heard to say yet again, "I'msure we'll be fine if we go just a littlefurther". She is always willing to gojust a little further.A very special quality attributedto Noel is her ability to adapt tochange. Her many years ofexperience in the Black Sash havenot made her inflexible orintolerant of the opinions ofyounger, less experiencedmembers.`AS A WHITE woman I had alwaysthought that pass laws were sort oftidy until one day 1 heard a blackwoman speaking at a meeting. Shehad brought her baby with her andexplained that black women alwaysNorah Henshilwoodtook their babies with them in casethey were arrested and thus unableto feed the child if it was left athome. I realised there wa., anotherside to the pays IaI always said "no one is going tomake me stand in the road like asandwich man" so the first time Istood was memorable. I rememberstanding outside the Houses ofParliament and being greeted byLuthuli. A woman, clearly right-wing, asked, "Who is that kaffir'>"When told it is Chief Lutliuli sheturned to us and said, "You'restanding in the rain for black,they'll never do that for you!" I said,"You're Lluitc right - they won't"Noel's hearty laughter at thispoint underscored her deep under-standing o1 human motivation. Shecan also be seriously rellective.`I've always found stands some-how cathartic - not haunts, theywere rather catty - but standingquietly and having time to think,that was very satisfying.'Noel recalls an amusing standthat took place at the opening ofD F Malan Airport. Many mem-bers had been invited, as the wivesof their husbands, to attend theceremony.`We arrived, with sashes tuckedinto our handbags and took ourseats on the concourse. As the planecarrying Minister Schoeman, whowas opening the airport, toucheddown, we put our sashes on.`This took more courage thananything I'd ever done before, ashere we were, standing in front ofour social friends who must havethought we were sandwich men.`One of the wonderful things tome about the Black Sash is that al-though there have been terrific per-sonality clashes people up to nowhave always swallowed their differ-ences for the good of the BlackSash. People are not trying to gethigher positions, money or powerin the Black Sash. They are all in acertain amount of danger and haveno ulterior motives. This makes itso much better to work in than apolitical party which has to winvotes '.Noel has two daughters who aremm rse be ~ of the Black Sash. Herentire Cape Town-based familyobserve a tradition of spendingSunday lunch teach week with themat the Robb home in Kenilworth.Barbara Versveld has made anenormous contribution to BlackSash, Cape Western. She ran theadvice office for many years and hermoving and evocative advice officeoffice reports are remembered withdeep appreciation and respect.'1 H1 WOMLN'S DI.I-ENCE of theConstitution league is going to becalled the Black Sash now and it iscoming to Cape Town very soon.Want to join'.'" said Nancy Sharplesto my startled self one midday in1955 as we waited f),ion-ryoL,n, utoemerge from their kidegarten. Iwas a bit stand-otfish. Thought Ihad some ml~Slon towardAfrikanerdom. imagining that Ihad contacts t could develop to help

Page 34 of 53 44 March 1988that `population group' retain orrecover certain vestiges of sanity.They didn't need me, my contactsand many others stayed pretty sanewithout any help from me. Butalong came Group Areas legislationand my fantasies dissolxed as 1 sawneighbours threatened and thetrwf ul looming spectre ofhomogenised whites. Back toNancy. I became part of the Rose-bank branch and I'm still there.Looking back. I can see myselfgoing round wth my first petitionin my slightly trembling hand,discovering how few people in myown street agreed with me.'I'm proud to belong to myorganisation: it can move withoutgetting carried away and no onecould call LIS static although we arestickers.'I-here have been some rottentomatoes, insults and advice toreturn to our kitchens, and thingswere never tame. Today's issues areincomparably heavier but they arethe logical outcome of what we-rc protesting then, and we arestill seen as a Big Threat needing theBig Stick. A force to be reckonedwith, riot just spanked'?`Among ourselves, are we lessto rmidahle at Icadership level'! Nothrain-power-wise, but yes, I thinkwe Ire more accessible now. Wearemore practised, I notice, in humanskills beyond the academic. WeI" c Ica rnt more about how peopletick. And we are still a funny hunch

Page 35 of 53 March 194845the train very early to escape us.However, we decided to standoutside his compartment and heunknowingly gave us a wonderfulstart by coming outside, waving agin at me and shouting "look at theladies all in mourning- how abouta gin!"Once the Black Sash becameactive, cabinet ministers refused togive any information regardingofficial movements to the press.They travelled under assumednames and used the back entrancesto airports and other public places.It clearly affected them.n rder to monitor their officialmovements we established a codewhich operated from a florist shopin Johannesburg called `FlowerDesign' and my shop `Forget-me-nOts' in Constantia. We kept itgoing for a year.Each cabinet minister was giventhe name of a flower and ourtelegrams between shops wouldread something like this: "Havedespatched carnations by I I HITtrain -- Kindly return empties" --which meant that Eric Louw wasleaving on the 11 atra in andwould those at the other end pleaselet us know when he was returning.I once had a new assistant andhad forgotten to warn her of this.She remarked "What a crazy florist- they've just sent a box of staticeby air- it could easily have comeby train". 1 said "That's not statice- it's Paul Sauer" and rushed outto the airport.It did however lead to so, ecluon slon s,)mct*mes. As when T ehad a telegram saying "Orchidarriving 2 p.m. by air" and as wewere expecting a consignment oforchids Ourselves we were not surewhether it was real orchirds or MrSt rydom!When 60 new senators were dueto arrive to discuss the common rollbill in parliament they were all verycareful not to give away theirmovements. In desperation 1phoned the flower shop knowing Iwas being tapped and said "We arehaving a very big funeral onMonday and are finding it verydifficult to get flowers - can youhelp me'."Answer "We are in the samepOSition here but suggest you trythe w holesalcrs in Beaufort Westthey may ha- supplies" and theydid too!The large book symbolising theconstitution which we used in theprotest march up Adderley Streetwas made by my husband and hadto be kept in my lounge it was solarge. There are so many othermemories which, along with thefeeling O1 comradeship amongst usall, made light of uphill work ind0 Ut.on a dcfcncc ( t the constit nagai nst p ),it cal manipulation:1 remember making 2 000 blackcr, nkly paper roses to wear. 1remember Betty Waterson's dress- made specially with a black lineacross it to wear in the House whenwe had been told to remove oursashes.1 remember Barbara ~illisplacing her hands in black gloves tolook like a sash.I remember being told twearo"I sashes whenever we Lo,(, ld andgoing on to the SS Corona to do theflowers with my fire stall wearingblack sashes and the passengersto ()".s () L.()n" Lo in casewe were heralding a minir c, Oluticrn.t remember visiting the shops Iused to patronise and wearing mysash. if t didn't get a good receptionI didn't go back.1 remember the feeling ofgratitude at being given the oppor-tunity to fight for what I believed tobe right -- for as the late MorrisBroughton, the editor of the flrgu.rand a great supporter, said "For evilto flourish it is sufficient for goodmen to do nothing".AeLt d,,f %,,~dm~lSHE'S THE LADY who puts onthat black sash and holds aplacard to protest- the onewho works in the advice officesometimes.At night - when she's notgoing to meetings - she tellsyou bed-time stories, allabout people's problems withevictions and municipalpolice.Don't you remember? She'sthe one with the stack of oldnewspapers, trying to sort outher clippings.You sometimes see her inbetween field trips. Or whenshe's not at workshops. Orcounting detentions.Sometimes she bakes - forcake sales. And she goes onorientation trips to ruralareas. She has to talk toforeign visitors and take themto the soup kitchen.When she washes up thedishes - which isn't often --she sings Siyavuka! And sheteaches you the toyi-toyi. Andshe goes to lectures.You've only forgotten hernow because she's away at aconference. But she'll soon beback - and you'll be able tohave an interview with her.0Bobby Melun.rky

Page 36 of 53 46 March 1988From small beginnings, not solong ago, Cape WesternRegion's initiatives in the sphere ofrural work have pointed the way toincreasing involvement in this areaof pressing need. The advice office,for example, recently co-operatedwith related organisations to holdan extensive workshop, where itsskills and experience were sharedwith advice office workers fromrral i Oppul townshIns (see osite page).The Rura terest Group (RIG)has taken a new name -Plaaswerkers Inligtingsgroep (PIG)- to signify it's focus on theworking and living conditions oflabourers on the farms. Adviceoffice files, updated bya researcher,provided the basis for a bookletabout Paarl. Opportunities forfurther booklets about towns orregions will arise as fieldwork isextended and details of other`hidden stories' are filled in.The publications listed on thispage are available from The BlackSash, 5 Long Street, Mowbray7700.New appointmentIn .January Annemarie Hen-driki, took up an appointmentas Black Sash fieldworkerwith the responsibility offocussing on rural issues andcarrying forward Philip vanRyneveld's work. Annemariehas for some time been amember of the Black Sash.Funding is now beingsought for a rural fieldworkerin the Southern Cape. Thisi3 lack Sash branch presentlyoperates as part of the CapeWestern Region.ruralround-updownsouthcandy malherbePlaaslike Kaapin die WesTHEHIDDEN Sr~RYPluu.rpruatjie.r. The usefulness ofthis little booklet, which combinespractical advice (e.g. `Noodhulp opdie Plaas') with legal information(e.g. `Die Dop is Onwettig') andshort items of labour news, hasbeen proved by the demand: thecurrent edition is Number 3 (8 pp.prepared by PIG).Moontlike Hulpbroune inPlua.clike Gebiede in the We,Kaap. Other regions (if they havenot already done so!) may wish tocompile and disseminate the kind ofinformation contained in this book-let, which includes sources of helprelated to health, unemployment,alcoholism, education, disable-ment, legal problems and muchmore. (20pp, by PIG).Paarl - the Hidden Story. Thisbook was brought out to coincidewith the Paarl 300 Festival - thetercentenary, that is, of white settle-ment in the Berg River Valley.1988 is notable in that this yearwill see celebrations of: the Diasvoyage (500 years); the arrival ofthe Huguenots (300 years); theGreat Trek (150 years) and theNatonal Party victory (40 years).(64 pp, prepared by the PaarlProject).Furmworkerr and the Law. Thispublication - Books I and 11, witha third planned for a later stage - isa paralegal handbook. It addressesthe legal needs of people on farmsand in rural communities. In 1984aNational Manpower Commissioncompleted its report on the workingconditions of farm and domesticworkers. After waiting in vain forthese findings to be published andfor a start to be made with thenecessary revision of the relevantacts, it was decided to proceed onthe basis of existing law. The hand-book explains the legal system andges on to provide examples of theworkings of the law by means oftypical cases arising from housing,citizenship, accident, employment,pension and other problems facedby these categories of workers.(Prepared by Annemarie Hendrikzan editorial committee andnumerous other contributors, withbacking from the Black Sash andthe Rural Legal Services Trust.)

Page 37 of 53 March 1988' 47n June last year, the CapeWestern Region of the BlackSash convened a meeting for inter-ested people to discuss the develop-ment of a comprehensive AdviceOffice Training Programme forrural communities. This meetingwas called in response to numerousappeals for training from ruralcommunities throughout the Cape.A steering committee was formed,planning began and outsidefunding was secured. Participantorganisations on the committeewere the Black Sash, the AdviceOftice Forum, Transport andGeneral Workers Union AidService, Legal Resources Centre,Legal Education Action Project(U CT) and Organisation of Appro-priate Social Services in %A. Thegroup met regularly once a week todevelop a three-week programmeoffering training in basic adviceoffice skills. Keeping in mind thefact that 'offices' are highlyvulnerable in the rural areas, it wasdecided to call the project 'TheA vice 0d W )rker Training Pro-gramme'. Thirty-three peopleoattended from 16 twns in the CapeProvince. Facilitators from each ofthe planning organisations ledcourses starting with interviewingand basic record- keeping skills andcontinuing through paralegal workto media and organisational skills.The Black Sash co-ordinated theprogramme as a whole as well asoffering three courses. The first andintroductory course on trainee'sexpectations was led by Di Bishop.In the second week, Sue Joyntdid aworkshop on identity documentsand social grants. During the thirdweek, Di Bishop introduced thequestion of funding, fundraisingand finance in general. In theevenings more informal sessionswere held and speakers from organ-isations such as COSATU, UDFand the Democratic LawyersOrganisation were invited. Thetrainees attended a play, a publicmeeting, a rock concert and a jazzclub for entertainment. Relaxationexercises and games were alsoprovided, and needed,l he course was xery -11re cei,ed. Participants ~ercenthusiastic, capable and ~er~receptive. Perhaps the mostrewarding aspect was the relation-ships that have den eloped as a - ultbreaking groundin training ruraladvice workerssue van der merweWorkshopping was never like this hefore. A marathonthree-week advice worker training programme was heldin Cape Town at the end of September last year. It was a`happening' co-ordinated by Sue van der Merwe.Trainee relaxing after a heavy input rerrion.of this intensive working together.Black Sash participants ha, ede\eloped firm and meaningfulbonds ~~ith other participatingorganisations XNhichin turn haveled to further joint project>.~I r

Page 38 of 53 48 March 1988Judy Chalmersprovider thebackground byintroducingMrs Mbunye.HildaTbsaka'stestimony toher friendshipwith the latePaulineMbunye (pic-tured on theright) appearshere in theform in whichwe received it.Its uniqzae view-point revealsthe commit-ment andstrategies onwhich organi-sational gainsare built.Mrs Pauline Nomboyiso Mbunye first visited the Port Elizabeth Advice OfficeinSeptember 1985 - brought in by Mr Molifi, who often brings clients in tous, and whoattempted to look after her well-being.Mrs M bunyc's problem was a financial one. She was 72 years old and had nomeans ofsupport. Because of her beliefs she lord refused to get a pass book, havingburnt hers in the'fifties, and she still refused to give in. Up to now she had survived byselling vegetablesbut her health was failing and she could no longer do this. She felt theend was near (of thegovernment, not herself) and did not want to give up her principles now.She had never been able to get domestic work as each time she had toproduce her passbook and this she could not do. Once she was arrested for not having apass. Her familywent to pay the fine but she said no, she wanted to serve the sentence andshe did for threeweeks.Eventually we managed to get her a small monthly pension from a sympatheticwomanoverseas and this enabled her to survive. She also refused to get the newIdentity Book,saying, `I don't want a book from Botha. I am waiting_for our people torule'.Mrs Mbunye was to be seen at most of the political trials, dressed in whiteor green,black and gold, always barefoot.The Black Sash attended her funeral, and she would have approved, I think.Her coffinrested next to those of two young activists, all draped in the green, blackand gold flag.The songs she loved were sung and perhaps it was not inappropriate for thechurch to besurrounded by security forces, who hovered about as her coffin was loweredinto itsgrave.Like her good friend Mrs Tshaka, we, the Black Sash, miss her a lot.'she was so keenand brave and brightshe is, as her spirit, still alive. Her words arestill ringing in my ears. Words of comfortand encouragement.She was an optimist full of magnificent,eloquent sense.For her it was a stimulus indeed to be withpeople, presenting views and ideas.She was so strong and fearless, fond ofsharing responsibility and responding indiscussion and dialogue.Comrade Mbunye joined the AfricanNational Congress in 1952 - 26th of June.Being a member, she always told people that4veryone is born free and to be free, let

Page 39 of 53 March 198849She .raid it2ca.r herchance towalk hardand fear-less on thesui face oftheearth . . .'everyone demand his rights even though theyare denied.Whenever she visited a friend, she wouldwalk in and kneel and shake hands and saythese words:'Qamata ke tayi sibone rr.rivelele kobo-bugxwayiha usibcke e.rifubeni .rakho rrkuzeSlysbone inkukhulukka emband ezeliveni.'(God bring us through the repression and takeus to your breast so that we can see theliberation coming out of oppression.)1953 she took part in encouraging thecommunity to defy laws of discrimination.These laws prevented a black person frombeing a shop assistant. The shops were ownedby whites and at the same time mostcustomers were black.Being an organiser of the community, sheordered all adults to go to town with theirchildren and enter all illegal places for blacks.For she was so keen and brave and bright,she knew very well what she was doing. It washer responsibility to check door to door to seewho was arrested. If parents in a householdwere arrested she looked after that family byproviding food and other things like medicalaid where it was needed.The above-mentioned shop boycott was thefirst attempt.The second. attempt was a boycott ofpotatoes at the time the Pass was being forcedon men. The potato boycott was caused by thegovernment forcing every man carrying aPass to work at their jobs and those who werejobless were to be taken to Barberton to workon potato fields. There was no job securitythere because they were cheap labourers.Most of them never came back and those whodid told us about unfair treatment and askedus to launch a boycott over potatoes whichwas done - well-organised and thorough.Oranges were also boycotted because oflow payments to those who were working onthe orchards and were also being ill treated.Later there was a School Boycott arisingfrom Dr Verwoerd's Bill on Bantu Education.Women protested and asked all parents totake their children out from schools andinstead to open up their own schools in theCultural Clubs. When all schools remainedempty policemen went to the Cultural Clubsand harassed children. Women then realisedthat the best thing to do was to break downwalls in their houses to make more space, andto continue teaching their children there.Comrade Mbunye was active in this.Between 1957 and 1959 workers launched astayaway but a minority went to work sayingthey were here to come to work for theirfamilies. Most of them were the people fromhomelands. Mrs Mbunye reacted to theproblem and plans were made. An effectiveone was her suggestion that all women mustcome together to sleep together. Women wereto wear mens overalls and must also carrysticks to attack those stubborn men.Women slept where the General Tyresfactory is today. At dawn men were seencoming. Women lay down flat and waited.When the men were about ten metres awayfrom them women stood up and charged tothem. The men were so shocked anddisbelieving. Others ran away. Those whowere standing amazed were beaten up. Thewomen made sure they would not berecognised as women. They changed theirvoices to baritone tones.As the leader, Mrs Mbunye said 'TshisaTshisa' meaning beat - beat. Because menwere so afraid of her not even one even stoodfacing her. She was so powerful.She respected her leaders like MrsMatomela, Mrs Baard and the Black Sash.She had friends like Mrs Pirie and the lateMrs Peggy Levy. Mrs Pirie was given a Xhosaname Nokhaya.At the time Sheena Duncan was leadingwomen to Cape Town people were wavinghandkerchiefs. Mrs Mbunye said people mustpray instead. In her prayers she never forgotto mention other leaders like Lilian Ngoyi,Helen Joseph, Ameena Cachalia, LillyDiedericks and Sophie Williams.Even now she feels like my best friend. Herspirit is still burning inside my heart and herwords are still ringing in my ears.The fact that she wore no shoes was notaccidental but a spiritual commitment to thepeoples struggle.The day Mr Nelson Rholihlahlo Mandelaand his comrades were sentenced was the lastday she wore shoes on her feet. She said it washer chance to walk hard and fearless on thesurface of the earth as shoes would make anoise.Before my friend's last day she came to myhouse every day for two weeks to have con-versations with me about the struggle and herlast day to come. She asked me to take her to adressmaker who could make an ANC pattern-ed outfit.She asked for a green blouse and gown anda green, black and gold dock. She said she wasgoing with the Black Sash to a place overseaswhere Mr Savage was going to build a verybeautiful spacious house for her.She said long ago she will never die bybullet as she would never be arrested. Also,she would never carry a pass. When 1understood her condition I began to realisewhat she was saying about her uniform andthe beautiful house.On her burial day, it was a matter ofimportance that her coffin should be coveredin ANC colours as she wished. In her lastwords to me she asked if I knew SheenaDuncan, I said, `No, but 1 know her work'then she said `Thanks'.1, Mrs Tshaka, I miss her a lot. 0

Page 40 of 53 50 March 1988WORKING AT THE OUTPOSTSa personal viewfrom the midlandspat merrettPress reports on the UDF/hakatha violence conceal ddramatic and complex reality which Puts sPecialdemandson the membership of the Natal Midlands Region.There are mrtain characteristicsNhich make Pictermaritzburg(which is m ellect the Natal Mid-lands Region) somewhat of anaberration compared to otherregions. Does any other region havea magistrate who permits the BlackSash to hold regular stands duringthe State of Emergency, oncontroversial issues such as recentSADF action in Angola, presscensorship and Namibia? The levelof state repression here is muchmilder than in Grahamstown or thelarger centres: detentions are fewer,mrture less common, and the onlyaction taken against the Black Sashstands is the recording of namesand addresses. The divisions on theleft which seem extremely conten-tious in larger centres, oa~c evidenthere but cause irritation rather thanostracisation. In the Black Sash, forinvtance, we have barely begun toaddress such crucial issues as thesocialist-capitalist or workerist-populist debates, and we haveparticipated in the organising ofpublic meetings with quitedisparate political groupings in thelast two years.Some of the political features ofthis region can be attributed to twoallied political forces: Inkatha andthe Indaba. Inkatha is the politicalparty that rules Kwazulu andclaims majority black support inthe region. It has operated freelydi turing the State of Emergency,unlike extra- parliamentarypolitical groups like the UDF andtrade unionists within COSATUwho have suffered severe staterepression and detentions.Inkatha was one of the majorparties involved in the Indaba,which began as a series of talksbetween various Natal-basedorganisations and political partiesand culminated in a set of consti-tutional proposals for the regionthat its proponents believe could, ifimplemented, bring peace andstability to Natal.Organisations like the UDF andCOSATU declined to participate inthe lndaba because they consideredit to be an exercise designed tomaintain and protect the vestedpolitical and economic interest ofits major participants - Inkathaand powerful business andindustrial groups.That parties of the Right,including the National Party, alsodeclined to participate, leaving theIndaba with a limited `centre'support base. Throughout 1987 theIndaba has been trying to broadenthat base by promoting its pro-posals through a concentratedadvertising campaign.At the same time, the Pieter-maritzburg area has been engulfedin the most horrific civil war thatclaimed the lives of about 154people between September andDecember - 50 of them in Octoberalone. The killings have continuedunabated this year - indeed theyhave intensified during the secondhalf of January.The complexities of the violencecannot yet be unravelled because ofState of Emergency censorship andstate repression of political move-ments that promote a national,non-racial democracy in SouthAfrica. However, the origins of theviolence have been traced back tothe early 1980s and analysed bylocal historians. It began at a timewhen Inkatha was attempting toincrease its membership -- andexperiencing a threat to itshegemony due, in part, to growing"support for the UDF andCOSATU.This set the context for the rise ofInkatha-supporting warlords -who have spearheaded a viciousvigilante campaign against UDFand COSATU activists. The latterretaliated and the entire region hasbeen caught up in this violence.One of the most marked anddisturbing features of the situationhas been repeated statements, bypeople involved in attempts toresolve the conflict, that anotherdestabilising force (whose actionscannot be publicised or criticisedunder a grant of immunity by theState of Emergency) has beenactively involved in supporting andprotecting one side to the conflict.A complicating factor seems tohave been the movement ofhardened criminals and thugsinto the space created by thepolitical violence, some of whomare uneducated, unemployedyouths who may not be affiliated toany political faction, but who arebiterly alienated from their socialand economic environment and aretaking out their frustrations ontheir own communities. (In anunemployment survey conductedby the Development StudiesResearch Group, University ofNatal PMB, in 1986, it was

Page 41 of 53 discovered that amongst an Africanpopulation of over 250 000 in thegreater Pietermaritzburg district,33,4% were unemployed, of which81,5% were under the age of 35years.)In October the SADF and SAPwere deployed in the townships andhundreds of summary randomarrests and detentions have beenmade. After long negotiations,peace talks between UDF-COSATU and Inkatha/UWUSA(the trade union arm of Inkatha)were initiated under the auspices ofthe Chambers of Commerce andIndustry. The latter have clearlyperceived the grave threat to thelong-term economic and financialstability of the entire region as aresult of the township anarchy. Thedetention of over 30 UDF andCOSATU activists and leadersbetween 13 and 19 November com-pletely disrupted the peace talks.Two of the UDF secretaries werefinally released after what appearsto have been intense pressureexerted by the business communityand the talks were resumed.Permission was even granted to theUDF to hold a public rally. Un-fortunately the killings continued.Given all these factors, who cansay what the real dynamics of thesituation are or claim with anyauthority who all the participantsare and what motivates them? Howtherefore can any genuine efforts beplanned or made to resolve what isclearly a deep-seated socio-politicaland economic crisis, and one whichis intimately linked to the wholecountry? The situation needs full-time research.What all this violence hasachieved is to show that the Indabap0 ~sr ce' , has been unable to addressthe roots of conflict in this reg ion-ft~also revpIs the spurious nature ofIn kat'a s ~Iaims to be the voice ofI'P ople sthe e and it determination toresist any challenge to itshegemony.These developments have alsohad important implications for theBlack Sash. Not all our membersare equally convinced that theIndaba process, and its constitu-tional proposals are unable to bringour country closer to the non-racialT hi., graffiti in 1?dezzdale, outside Pieterntaritzburg reflects theattitude of sonic localresidents to being engulfed in civil mar.democracy we seek. The Black Sashexecutive in the Midlands regionbelieves its most useful role wouldbeto educate our members and thewider public on the complex issuesinvolved. The two general meetingswe organised recently on theIn dabaandInk at ha evoked moreinterest and attendance than anyother meeting in the last few years.But to be really effective we need tobe able to mount regular researchand publicity.Another activity that deservesmore attention is the Pietermaritz-burg advice office, which is run inthe mornings by voluntary workersand in the afternoon by a paid case-worker. In 1986, 5 843 interviewswere conducted, most of theproblems relating to work and payproblems, pension refunds andUIF, all of which reflect poorlabour relations in the capital, andthe effects of the recession. Thereare only two other advice offices forblacks locally: COSATU (whichassists only union members) andthe Legal Aid Clinic (which closesduring all university vacations),and consequently the burden onour advice office is considerable.Employing a caseworker has en-abled us to cope with the volume ofclients, but has not made possiblewider initiatives such as research,education, and advice to potentialself-help groups (many of which Callfoul of Inkatha). Ideally our v olun-tary workers and/or the case-worker should attempt theseventures, but the sheer volume ofclients makes this impossible.Thus the potential in Pieter-maritzburg for the Black Sash to doactive research, documentation,publicity and education, on issuesranging from local political violen-ce, Inkatha, the lndaba, labour law,and how to cope with destitution, is,virtually unlimited, but the natureof our membership I believemilitates against such activ ity beingdone on a voluntary basis. In thelast seven years the worsening o1political and socio-economic ci is ishave both increased our memher-ship to 91 (plus 8 associatemembers), and altered the strnetureof that membership. Of the 33 lullmembers who joined sinceSeptember 1985. 15 are fullyemployed. and 11 arc Part-time-Eight out of ten executive membersare in full-time employment. mm b,,,the demands of career, family andthe Black Sash have to be finelybalanced, and we no longer haveWrn n who have the aptitude andornthe freedom to devote most of theirtime and energy to politicalactivism.The voluntary nature of theBlack Sash is a hallowed tradition,and is not likely to die out, for thereis an increasing number of politicis-ed women in Pietermaritzburg andelsewhere who wish to be active inprogressive vyomen's organisations.But changing circumstance. anda more dynamic local executive,point towards the desirability of theBlack Sash employing researchstaff in this region. Although thereare a large number of progressiveoreanisations locally (in fact adisproportionate number relativeto the sire of the city, the whitepopulation o1 which is about onethird smaller than Durban), fete- ofthem employ lull-time researchers,and the PM B campus of the univer-s'I lack the high number of. t Sresearch posts enjoyed by theDurban campus. such a movewould mean the diftercnce betweenthe Black Sash maintaining a lowprofile in this region, and making agenuine contribution to the strugglefor a more just society. D

Page 42 of 53 52 March 1988. REVIEWSThe Strollersby Lesley Beake00-kew Miller Longman19X7)This book was written for a)-outhful audience. Our bookre viewer i-r ten years old:Johnny Kashan leaves homehecause the way he is treated is notfbut li fe on the streetsair is not faireither.He joins a gang who roam thestreets of Cape Town mostly~Ireping in derelict factories andwarchuwes.-I hey earn their money bybegging and spend it on food,cigarettes and lighter refills to sniff.Jh ny so(,n esonn becom leader ofthe gang of four. The others areAbel the film fanatic, who isJohnny's clone friend, 'in kie agood natured boy with a bad coughand Mesana who is about eight andis the youngest in the group.'7- here are good times and badtimes I-or the gang.When there is money things gov,cll but when they are cold andhungry things are very difficult.'1 -he book is very interestingbecause it describes the Strollers'way of life very well. It alsodescribes some of the fascinatingcharacters that Johnny meetsincluding Abraham of the SpiderMcn, who wears the most extra-ordinary clothes.-these boys and girls end up inthis type of situation because therearc too Iew teachers and too manypupils and because they cannotlearn properly this causes trouble athome and so they eventually runaway and join a group of strollers.Strollers say they are free butthey really have no freedom.T-hey cannot free themselvesfrom drugs and the need to beg.They are not free to chooseanother life-style.-I he Strollers is an interesting andtouchingly realistic book.South Africa UnderApartheidJacqueline A. Kalley.Occasional Paper 31. Shuterand Shooter, with theInstitute of Social andEconomic Research, RhodesUniversity. 1987.Paperback 839,00This large paperback, with itspowerfully grim-looking cover inmainly black and yellow, looks justright for lying on the coffee table toimpress liberal visitors. No BlackSash member would stoop to such aploy, of course, but if they did,disappointment would soon set in.This is not a rivetingcover-to-coverread. It is `a select and annotatedbibliography' compiled by anexpert, and it's very much aworking volume.It consists of I 123 numbereditems - publications listed inalphabetical order of- authors, andeach with a short summary of con-tents. There are two indexes, one ofauthors and the other, very useful,of subjects. Researchers in political,social and economic fields have, noThoma.r Woodward doubt, been using the book forJACg1iJEB.)INE A. 1CAr.LFYWdEaunder!~'~fIII, T'El~some months and will certainlyhft,ot,oave fo nd it clear, accurate andcomprehensive.The ordinary reader hoping tobone up on some aspect ofapartheid legislation, say, orhistory, will have less joy. Thesubject index will direct the reader~sto particular books or article, butafter that one is on one's own. l hisis, after all, a bibliography, a list,and a bibliographer mustscrupulously refrain fromcommenting, or evaluating thematerial in any way. The reader willhe left to weigh up, from thesummaries, whether publicationswill be worth buying or borrowing.Interested readers should,without too much difficulty, he ableto use this meticulous catalogueto help pinpoint areas of workneeding attention. Many will bestruck, as 1 was, by the sheer bulkof the literature apartheid hasgenerated (spawned might be abetter work in some cases) over theyears. Many will also be askinggloomily where all this print andpaper have got us. Not far, perhaps,but as this book shows, many fineminds have bent themselves toconsideration of the problems andit is good to know that a work ofthis kind helps us gain access towtIhat may be inspiring thinking. ElStephanie Alexander

Page 43 of 53 Ma-5 198853Democratic Liberal-ism in South AfricaIts History and ProspectJeffrey Butler, RichardElphick, and David Welsh(eds) (Wesleyan UniversityPress & David Philip(Pty) Ltd)During the past two decades ourunderstanding of southern Africa'spast has been enormously enriched.The records have yielded vividrecreations of the experiences ofdispossessed groups and newexplanations have been found forprevailing patterns of oppressionand dominance.In this context DemocraticLiberalism in South Africaexplores the past, present andfuture of liberal action and thought.The three editors and twenty or soother contributors have produced awell-integrated work - surprising-ly so since the contributions cameout of a conference (June /July1986) of scholars representing quitediverse foci of analysis andresearch.Tradition in South AfricanHistory. In `The Liberal Party,1953-1968', past and present mergeeerily at several points. Twoauthors (Elphick, Lewsen) harkback to Alfred Hoernle's between-the-wars lament that liberals hadstopped short of defining what aliberal South African society oughtto be like. Elphick remarks, inwords which apply equally to 1988:`To be hopeful in such a time waspossibly a virtue, but it was nosubstitute for rigorous thought'.Part II, Liberal Interpretationsof South African History(Saunders, Butler & Schreuder,Elphick), may sound like an in-house affair for historians but this isnot the case. The liberal-radicaldebate around interpretations ofour country's past is an importantpart of the Great Debate out ofwhich its future will take shape. `Itis to be hoped', Elphicknotes, `thatliberal historians will find thecourage ... to set forth asophisticated view of history thatwill make an open society firstimaginable, then real'.Under the heading, Towards aLiberal Analysis of ContemporarySouth Africa (Part Ill), the focusshifts to capitalism in relation tophenomena such as racism (Welsh)and underdevelopment (Brom-berger & Hughes). Yudelman's`State and Capital in Contempo-rary South Africa' is, perhaps, moredifficult for non-economists but,among other merits, it illustrates astrength of this volume: the carefuldefinition of key terms (see also,e.g., Degenaar's `Nationalism,Liberalism, and Pluralism' and, inPart IV, Mathews on the rule oflaw).Readers who wish better tounderstand economic factors andto feel more at home with economictheories will be aided by these andother chapters - which, of course,may be compared with treatmentsof the same themes by scholars tothe left and right.To enter one area of disputewithin the liberal camp, considerthe policy of `affirmative action' toSix chapters (Davenport, Du compensate groups which haveToit, Elphick, Butler, Lewsen, been discriminated againstIrvine) make up Part 1, The Liberal (Simkins). Is this a route whichdemocratic liberals, in their searchfor economic justice, wish to take?Traditional Black Sash concerns- press freedom (Shaw), education(Hofmeyr) and, most particularly,the law (Dugard, Mathew) -formthe subjects of Part IV. `Liberalsand the Education Crisis' is strongand encouraging: after exhortingliberals to reject any `notion of amiddle-ground positioning ... andto delineate their terrain positively',Hofmeyr offers constructive ideas- not just for educationists.Echoing Hoernle's complaint ahalf century ago, Dugard urgesliberals to take up the challenge ofconstitutional model-building. Inspite of claims made for it, heargues, the Freedom Charter of1955 provides no such blueprint: itis `a statement of principles towhich a democratic South Africashould aspire and does not purportto be a constitutional instrument'.In his `Economic Means andPolitical Ends in the FreedomCharter', Archer provides aneconomist's analysis of theeconomic clauses of this centraldocument. This section (Part V),titled Democratic Liberalism in theCurrent Crisis, is essential readingwhich the passage of time (alreadyalmost two years) has not made lessrelevant. If SASH readers see littlereference to the knowledge of lifeexperience which Black Sash workbrings out, they will find thisknowledge useful when assessingthese six analyses (besides Archer,by Adam, Nattrass, SchlemmerSlabbert and Giliomee).This volume is tar more than aresource of first-rate scholarshiparound the theme of liberalism. It isa clarion call, buttressed by feasiblegoals and performable tasks, tothose who wish for `a democraticliberal outcome in South Africa'. Ifhope seems almost extinguished onan unblinkered contemplation ofthe facts, it sure ivies nonetheless inthe perception of `the open andcreative possibilities of humanhistory' which the authors holdout.Candy Malherbe

Page 44 of 53 54 March 1988The Systems DebateI was shocked at a recent GeneralMeeting to hear an `old' menrbcrsay, that we in the Black Sash "havetackled every issue except the oneahout Free Enterprise vs Socialism:and we should not touch it becausethe Sash would probably be dividedin the middle".If we are genuinely striving for ajust society in South Africa,wanting to 'further the politicaleducation and enlightenment ofSouth African citizens and others'(see our Aims and Objectives), howcan we rightfully exclude the veryimportant aspect of materialintere,t and the structuring ofeconomic life from our agenda nowanti in a future South Africa? The'Systems Debate' is concerned withan integral part of daily political lifeand it does not befit the BlackSash, in my opinion, to adopt anostrich-like attitude evading thesetopics.I would like to encourageregions, branches and individualmembers to participate in thisdebate. We do not have to 'split inthe middle', nor do we have to fighteach other: it is rather a question ofinformation and exchange ofperspectives.Birga ThomasCape Western RegionLet's hear it for themenWe would like to commend themagazine committee on a veryworthwhile August edition ofSASH.As with the other issues this year,the layout was good and the coverdesign made a powerful impact.The magazine offered a thoroughly'good read' from cover to cover andleft us with the satisfying feeling ofhaving gained valuable informationwhile also being challenged by newand, sometimes, contentious ideas.The large number of photographs,illustrations and cartoons contri-buted to making it look inviting andlively.Since the various aspects of theposition of women in South Africawere so admirably presented, wewould like to suggest that aninteresting focus for a future issuewould be the role and status of menin the Black Sash.Julia Denny, Nova de Villiers,Jill Joubert, Sue Ross and SueStewart (Albany Black Sash PressGroup).1, 1h- a debate d-eloping here?We tvould -Icon, contribution.,that arg,ie for change.rarcay from thepresent role and statu.r of men in theBlack- Sajrh or which elaborate onunfulfilled potential within thepresent order'. E,d.NEWS-STRIPAlbany campaign for Human Rights Day15 d&3sdecember 10do you have children (perhaps grandchildren) are you afraid for theirfuture insouth africa?will they have the privileges you would want for them - a fine educationa good job?perhaps they will. but in a changing world it is not their privileges thatyou worry about the most -will they havethe rights they are entitled to?food and shelter, education, work, the freedom to choose their lifestylethe assurance that they'll be protected by fairlaws?these are basic human rights that you would want your children to beassured ofyour employees no doubt have children too.the south african government should be urged to negotiate NOW, with theleaders who count, for the human rights of all our children.december 10 is human rights day. give it a thought.A campaign by the Albany Regionto mark Human Rights Day onDecember 10 included the oppositetext folded into a Christmas cardformat and distributed throughoutinGrahamstown. This was organisedby the region's 'White Outreach'group - recently established to tryto increase awareness amongstwhites in Grahamstown of thesituation in the city and in SouthAfrica generally.Together with the `Lawyers forHuman Rights' organisation, thegroup also placed a prominentnotice in the local Grocott't Mailnewspaper. It laid out the funda-mental rights which were adoptedand proclaimed by the UnitedNations on 10 December 1948.These included the right to parti-cipate in government, freedom ofmovement and residence, pro-tection against arbitrary arrest,detention and exile, and the right toknow!Nova de Villiers

Page 45 of 53 THE NATIONAL COUNCIL Mary Burton 30The Government's latest attempt to gain legiminacy.DIARY OF A RURAL VISIT Beva Runciman 32Lots at stake - responding to rural calls.BATTLE FOR NAMAQUALAND Lala Steyn 34Last chance for communal farming.MORE TRIBUTES TO THE PIONEERS Freda Bate, Philippa Taylor, Joan Pare 38Starting out .youth of the Hottentots Holland mountains.WHAT DOES MOMMY LOOK LIKE, DADDY? Bobby Melunsky 45A Sash Dad's whimsical reply.RURAL ROUND-UP Candy Malherbe 46Listing current Western Cape rural ventures.BREAKING GROUND IN TRAINING ADVICE WORKERS Sue van der Merwe 47Sharing .skills with Advice Office workers.SHE WAS SO KEEN AND BRAVE AND BRIGHT Judy Chalmers, Hilda Tshaka 48A gem of a testimony to Pauline MbunyeWORKING AT THE OUTPOSTS Pat Merrett 50The Natal Midlands region in a hot-spot.REVIEWS 52The Strollers, South Africa under Aparthied, Democratic Liberalism.LETTERS 54The Systems debate, Men in the Black SashNEWS-STRIP 54NATIONAL CONFERENCE 56Advance details about the Black Sash national conference.SASH magazineSubscriptionsSASH magazine is the official organ of the Black Sash. While editorials andeditorial policy 5 Long Street, Mowbray 7700adhere broadly to the policies ol'thc Black Sash, the views and opinionsexpressed in otlicrmaterial do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Black Sash.The contents of this magazine have been restricted in terms of theEmergency regulationsAll political comment in this issue, except where otherwise stated, is byS. A. Raynham,5 Long Street, Mowbray 7700.Imtol.~ R 15.00 per year, including GST andpostage.and Europe: R30 or equivalent.USA acrd Australia: R40 or equivalent.The contents of this magazine are protected by copyright. Those wishing toreproducecontents must do so in full with acknowledgement to SASH magazine.Published by the Black Sash, 5 Long Street, Mowbray 7700Printed by Fish Hoek Printing, Somerset House, Main Road, Fish Hoek 7975.SA ISSN 0030-4843Black Sash officesHeadquarters:-5 Long Street, Mowbray 7700Telephone: (021) 685-3513Telephone the above number for theaddresses and telephone numbers of otherBlack Sash branches.

Page 46 of 53 4 March 1988EDITORIAL COMMITTEEE'di""Helen ZilleGuest editor /or this issueSarah-Anne RaynhamSttG.edilht8Candy MalherbeSarah-Anne RaynhamHelen ZilleProofreadhtgSally AndcrsonHilary IvoryCandy MalherbeSarah-Anne RaynhantPhillippa TaylorDrriget artd lyontKate McCallumSarah-Anne RaynhatnProductionLinda-Jean DykstraKate MsCallumSarah-Anne RaynhamDistributionLo,. ShawJudy WoodwardRegional ReprereufafirerAlbanyNova de Villiersl3 orderLindy HarrisCape L'arteru'Nobel Douglas-JonesJobattnerbnrgJoyce HarrisNata/ CoartadRita EastonNatal Midl-drMary KleinenbergPrrtnrirtCarol LongCartoon credits:The cartoons above and onpp 12-13 arc by Plantu fromHuman Rightr: Question., andAn-- UNESCO 1981.Reproduced by permission ofUNESCO.editorialThe movement from one year to another usually calls for some kind ofstocktaking. We look back on 1987 and forward to 1988 within a contextof the Black Sash commitment to promoting the rule of law in South Africa- now a casualty of intense political struggle and, perhaps, of failure inadvocacy.This issue provides an overview of some of the recent political trials whichhave occupied our supreme courts. We also report on the emergence ofalternative systems of law enforcement on two fronts: Street Law andPeople's Justice. Increasingly, legal battles grow from rural bases. This isevident in those articles which describe the background of politicaldevelopments as they emerge from Namaqualand, Eastern Cape and NatalMidlands.Even this limited review shows a legal system subject to immense pressure- both procedural and political. If we are to make any sense of the realimplications of current developments in this field, we will require a fargreater degree of broad-based legal literacy within the Black Sash. Thecrisisof legitimacy that has enveloped the South African legal system will requirethe Black Sash to assess its environment with new eyes, as it were, inorder todistinguish the wood from the trees. We need to understand the roots ofuniversal principles of justice in order to extract those worth saving fromthesystem in which they are embedded. For it is unlikely that a legal system socontaminated by the lawlessness of the state will survive intact. We shallalsoneed to work for the transformation of those fundamentally just legalprinciples into new forms which are appropriate to a divided society as itmoves through phases of transition towards the new - probably as complexand challenging as the one we know.The immediate task of our national conference will be to begin planning asix-month campaign to mark the fortieth anniversary of the Declaration ofHuman Rights. In executing this campaign we will take forward the missionof working for the achievement of human rights in ways which show theirrelevance to contesting parties. Our cover was designed to suggest that thiswork can be done in joyful solidarity.

Page 47 of 53 March 19885POLITICAL TRIALS OF 1987law on aknife-edgeshauna westcott'There is an intimate and permanent relation-ship between freedom and the rule of law. Therule of law doer not constitute the whole offreedom but it is certainly a basic part of it ...There is an equally important link betweensocial justice and the rule of law in the senseagain that justice, while being a much broaderidea, incorporates the rule of laic as afundamental part of its meaning.'Anthony Mathews: Freedom, State Security and theRule of Law.1987 was a watershed year for thecourts. In several major political trialsthey have been adjudicating betweenthe regime and the resistance. In thiscontest the State of Emergency hascreated the framework for somealarming judgments and protractedproceedings. Shauna Westcott outlinesdevelopments in the Cape TownSupreme Court (picturedhere) overthelast two years.The Supreme Court in Keerom Street isquite an imposing edifice. It is designedthat way, as are the rituals of dress, procedureand language governing officials and lawyersparticipating in what is described as theadministration of justice. A certain amount ofp: ~np in the high courts has been considerednecessary and desirable by the rulers of mostsocieties. It is a way of stressing the serious-ness of what takes place. It can also be a wayof intimidating, mystifying and coercingthose at the base of the social pyramidwithout exposing those at the pinnacle to toomuch moral discomfort. Finally, it can bemere form, pretence - the gloss of tyrants.

Page 48 of 53 6 March 1988POLITICAL TRIALS OF 1987... no Personis safe fromwhat Mxoli.riPet-described as`state terror'...It is not within the scope of this article toconsider to what degree justice is accessible inordinary criminal and civil matters that donot fall within the category of' 'political trials'.But it should be noted that there is an extentto which any trial has political dimensions inso far as it reflects and perpetuates structuresof power and privilege. There is a corollary tothis in the unequal access to the courtssummed up by a nameless wit who remarkedthat `the courts, like the Ritz Hotel, are opento all'.Most South Africans probably understandwhat is meant by `political trials'. However, ifonly to be liberated from the need for endlessquotation marks, they will be defined in thisarticle as those in which the relationshipbetween the government and the governed is akey issue.In democratic societies this relationship issubject to what lawyers call `the rule of law'.This phrase may have to be abandoned inpost-apartheid South Africa as hopelesslycontaminated by the present regime's 40-yearhabit of ruling by enacting laws that `enthronea system of state lawlessness', as TonyMathews puts it.The simplest definition of `the rule of law'which emerges from Mathews's verythorough discussion is Albert Venn Dicey's:`The security given under the (English)Constitution to the rights of individuals.'Another is: `The legal control of the govern-ment in the interests of' freedom and justice.'There can't be many people who need to betold that in South Africa the `rule of law' hasbeen systematically demolished by a string of`security laws'. What that means is that noperson is safe from what Umkhonto we Sizwe(MK) cadre Mxolisi Petane, jailed inDecember 1987, described as `state terror'.S15-2a Westcott There are those who would object to this asextravagant language, but to the majority ofpeople in the country it is accurate.It is accurate, perhaps even an under-statement, for the estimated 70 000 peoplewho lost their homes when the Nyanga Bush,Portlands Cement, Nyanga Extension andKTC squatter camps went up in smokebetween May and June 1986. They allege --and so do priests, journalists, relief workersand others on the scene at the time --that thepolice and the Defence Force played an activerole in the destruction.The first of some 3 200 damages actionsagainst the Minister of Law and Order,brought on the basis of this allegation, iscurrently being heard in the Supreme Courtand may be a test case. At stake is over R5million in claims, the official credibility of thepolice and the remnants of popularconfidence in the courts.A prelude to the damages actions was thevain attempt of KTC residents to stave off thedestruction suffered by the three satellitecamps by means of an interdict againstwitdoeke, soldiers and police. A temporaryinterdict was granted but proved noprotection. Significantly, the Minister of Lawand Order withdrew his opposition to thegranting of a final order and agreed to paycosts. He said the case had become `academic'since KTC had been razed, and he could notafford to have his men tied up for months in atrial. The test case in the RS-million damagestrial is likely to occupy the Court at KeeromStreet for most of 1988.

Page 49 of 53 March 1988 7POLITICAL TRIALS OF 1987A rce~ze duri,ag the In fact nobody's men have been more tiedde rtructio~z of a KTC up in court during 1986 and 1987 than thesquatter camp iii minister's. If there was a medal to be won forwhich, it it alleged, being sued more often than anyone else, thethe police and Minister of Law and Order would have noDefence Force played rivals.an active role. A test He has been sued extensively - and hasdamages care against paid out an enormous amount of money - tothe Minister of law victims of the unlawful behaviour of hisand Order itcurrently being underlings. To cite two examples: Inheard. September 1986, the minister paid 8205 000to Heideveld resident Mr Leroy Walker whowas paralysed after being pushed off a roof bya policeman. Early in 1987, the minister wasordered to pay damages of R50 000 to MrsJuwaya Carelse, widow of a Salt River manshot in the head by a police warrant officer --since promoted to lieutenant - while he wasvisiting neighbours in September 1985. Thatsuch damages suits can succeed, despite thefact that security law give the police al-most every imaginable protection fromprosecution, is one of the arguments against atotally negative view of the present and futurerole of the courts.The Minister of Law and Order has alsobeen cited as the respondent in numerousapplications for the release of emergencyregulation detainees. There were far more ofthese applications in 1986 than in 1987

Page 50 of 53 8 March 7988POLITICAL TRIALS OF 1987... aDominicannun detainedafter a funeralbecause, thepolice .raid,she assaulteda constable.Sitter ClaireHarkin picturedoutside Pollrrnoorprison after herrelease fromdetention. She wassuet by SisterTheresa, acti,:,~Rebionul Superiorof the DominicanOrder.because, in the words of one of the Bar'sleading lights, such suits cannot be won -given the nature of the Emergency regulations- unless the police 'shoot themselves in thefoot', and this they have largely learned not todo after a year's practice. But they `shotthemselves in the foot'with regularity in 1986,and a number of detainees were releasedeither by order of the Supreme Court or bypolice shortly after such applications hadbeen launched.Among the most celebrated of these wasSister Claire Harkin, a Dominican nundetained after a funeral because, police said,she assaulted a constable, swore obscenely athim and hindered him in the course of hisduties. Papers filed on behalf of Sister Clairesaid she stood between the constable and ayoung man he was beating up and pleadedwith the constable to `please have mercy onthe boy'.Among the points made by Mr JusticeRobin Marais in a judgment that was anexample of how the courts can still choose touphold the rights of the individual against themight of the state, was that police affidavitshad been silent on the crucial factor of whythey did not arrest the nun in terms of theordinary law of the land.The state appealed against this judgmentand the Appellate Division - which,according to advocate Sydney Kentridge SC,has never recovered from the appointment in1955 of five judges whose qualifications forsuch elevation the legal profession was unableto detect - reserved its decision on 23November 1987.Wthy of mention among judgmentsor'handed down in 1987 - not least for thejudge's sharp criticism of former Bellville riotsquad boss Captain Ockert van Schalkwykfor `high-handed and unacceptablebehaviour' - is that given by Mr Justice LRose-, nnes in ordering the release fromdetention of jailed printer Mr Allie Parker.Mr Justice Rose-Innes also took issue with'brother' judge Mr Justice H C Nel over asupposed Appellate Division ruling that noreason for arrest had to be given to peopleheld in terms of the Emergency regulations.Mr Justice Nei said the ruling existed. MrJustice Rose-Innes said it did not, analysingthe case in question (the Kerchoff case) tosubstantiate his view that the point wasneither argued before the court norconsidered.An article of this length cannot beexhaustive but two further classes of trialneed to be mentioned before a conclusionabout the implications of political trials canbe drawn - `public violence' and so-called`terrorism' trials. Quotation marks are usedfor both terms because they are rejected asloaded by a significant and probably majorityconstituency.Passionate objectors to the term `terrorism'were the 13 young ANC members andsympathisers jailed in August 1987 by MrJustice Nei for terms ranging from three yearsto life. They said they were fighting for free-dom, that they were not lovers of violence,that violence had been forced upon them andupon the ANC after 50 years of peacefulprotest had accomplished only bannings,imprisonment and death. They stressed thatthey were `bound by a morality in thestruggle', as MK commander Li- Ngqung-wane put it.Defence team leader Denis Kuny SCobserved in his closing address that the trialwas `tragic' because the 13 were not criminalsbut `people of integrity, intelligence andprinciple'. This emerged vividly from theirevidence and statements from the dock inmitigation in which poverty, humiliation,exposure to brutality and an idealistic longingfor peace and justice for all were the themes.

Page 51 of 53 March 19889POLITICAL TRIALS OF 1987A teenage girl who `Will the court understand me as 1 am?' 26-wa.r one of the year-old Theophilus Mzukwa asked. `Will theAthlone High School court understand why an ordinary simplepupils charged with man like myself who has suffered all his lifepublic violence in the eventually turned to violence? Will this courtcare described below. understand that it is my love for people thatUnlike her co -pupils drove me to do what I did?'- `The WynbergSeven- .she went The court did not understand, dismissingfree. his statement along with the rest as `of little ifany value', describing him as `a terrorist notonly as defined in the relevant statute but inthe ordinary sense of the word', and jailinghim for 25 years. He had injured no one.Neither had any other of the 13.0the 'Public violence' front, concern andndismay over prison terms imposed on andfacing hundreds of young people caught upin the 1985 unrest have been pronounced.Perhaps the most well-known case is that ofthe `Wynberg Seven' -pupils from Wynbergand Athlone high schools, aged 17 to 19,jailed in June 1987 for =year (one for threeyears) for throwing stones. Some 30 000people had signed a petition to the ChiefJustice on behalf of the Seven, asking forleave to appeal, but this was refused. A panelof international jurists who visited SouthAfrica described such sentences as `borderingon the barbaric'.A solitary ray of light in this s e was castby Mr M W,gherJustice D I iamson, whosentenced four Zolani activists convicted ofstoning a house and two cars, setting onealight, to two years of community service andsuspended jail terms. The judge said evidencein mitigation left him `with the uneasyimpression that there may have been areluctance on the part of the authorities toreceive and act on complaints againstvigilantes'. The owners of the house and carswere vigilantes. The judge sought, inimposing this sentence, to effect reconcilia-tion in the divided community.The treatment of 'public violence' by thecourts was seen from a different angle inSeptember 1987 when Mr Justice C T Howiewas overruled by his two assessors in thematter of the guilt of two policemen -Warrant-Officer Kruger and Constable Villet- charged with murder.The facts were that the two hid behind afence on a corner in Bellville South afterconsiderable unrest during the day, withorders from Colonel Mans and Captain vanSchalkwyk to `eliminate' troublemakers. Acrowd of about 50 gathered, teargas was fired,people ran, and Kruger and Villet fired sevenshots, killing a young woman and woundingthree others.The assessors, who may overrule the judgeon questions of fact but not on questions oflaw, acquitted the policemen on the basis thatthey were following `superior orders' - adefence that failed Adolf Eichmann. Thejudge said he would have found them guilty -Kruger of murder and Villet of attemptedmurder - because the `superior orders' wereclearly unlawful.The state has appealed against theassessors' decision which may yet be over-turned by the Appellate Division.It is clear from the above that there arejudges, not all of whom are mentioned here,who will endeavour - in the shrunken spaceleft to them - to protect individuals from thelawlessness of the state. It must be recordedthat these judges are in a minority and fallunder the authority of Judge President MrJustice G G A Munnik, whose role ascommissioner in the controversial 'Ballinquiry' into the funding of UDFadvertisements had many critics, includingthe General Council of the Bar of SouthAfrica.It is also clear from the above that thestruggle between the regime and the peopleextends to the courts, where justice is more ofa stranger than the presiding genius.The present cost of this in terms of humansuffering is without measure. The cost for thefuture - unless the legal profession comes upwith something more concrete and compel-ling than the occasional disapprovingstatement and the odd heroic voice - may bethe loss of the baby with the bathwater when apeople angered past endurance comes tooverhaul the legal system. OShauna Wertcott resigned at Supreme Courtreporter of the Cape Timer at the end of 1987. She ita member of Black Sash Cape Western Region.

Page 52 of 53 THE BLACK SASH CALENDAR OF KEY DATES AND ANNIVERSARIESJANUARYA.N.C. founded in 1912.FEBRUARY[31 500th Anniversary of the arrival of Dias in Mossel Bay.12 District Six declared "white" 1966.28 ] A.N.C. Defiance Campaign 1952.MARCH8 International women's Day.F10 -13 Black Sash National Conference, Jhb;start of 6-month Human Rights Campaign.'12 National Detainees Day. 21 Sharpeville 1960; Langa, Uitenhage 1985.APRIL P.A.C. founded 1955. A.N.C. and P.A.C. banned 1960.13 300th Anniversary of the arrival of the Huguenots in Saldanha Bay.MAY1~ International Labour Day.10th Anniversary of Kassinga Raid; International Day of Solidarity withNamibia.19 Black Sash founded in 1955.25 African Liberation Day; O.A.U. formed 1963.31 40th Anniversary of Nationalist Rule in South Africa.JUNEOl International Children's Day.16 Soweto Day 1976.Lg6 Freedom Charter adopted by the Congress of the People 1955.JULYJ18 Mandela's 70th birthday.20 'Funeral of Cradock Four 1985.AUGUSTNational women's Day; March to Pretoria 1956.Ig U.D.F. launched 1983.26 Namibia Day.SEPTEMBERII Sebokeng 1984.F121 Steve Biko's death 1977.29 10th Anniversary of the U.N. Resolution 435 on NamibiaOCTOBER Troops into townships 1984.11 International Day of Sclidarity with Political Prisoners.16 Day of Prayer for Political Prisoners (Dependants Conference Sunday).19 Major black consciousness and other organisations banned 1977.NOVEMBER30 COSATU launched 1985.DECEMBER N.U.M. launched 1983.Human Rights Day; 40th Anniversary of theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights.16 150th Anniversary of the Great Trek.SUPPLEMENT TO SASH MAGAZINE MARCH 1988

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