Minister hits
Minister hits at sanctions N4UT and AUEW. emblyhas Africa.lemned The Western powers were oomic shunned byeveryother sotilsuing country in the world on t he .e apart- vot" for a mandatory arms ban only 8 countries voted November atainst gthe US, Belgiuns France, West Germanv Germany Italy, Luxemburg, suppr Netherlands, UK and US. ech y Denmark voted in favour in South of a mandatory arms embargo .sse.bly -following the decision to boration support it by a meeting of ne as a Nordic states ast August nd legitimacy of the struggle of the South African people for "the seizure of power" by all possible means. The Attaifbly also conAn'~ "lie continuing and intreasing collaboration by. Israel with the South Afric2n racist regime". In another esolution it authorised the UN Special Committee Against Apartheid to convene a world conference in 1977 for action against apartheid, as well as a second intrntinni tr~d, i n nn 0, svs France-of "on racist South A ,stop &AM4 I stigaten ofthe' How Mare the arms e IN October the I ment granted a I Marconi for the advanced militar tionssystem to1 African Goverm, AA NEWS tells i manoeuvre and i lies behind the d ecember 1976 AC1 liritain Birmingham BIRMINGHAM Anti-Apartheid -Movement and Birningharm Cam, paign for Justice in Zimbabwe held a 12-hour vigil on November 11the eleventh anniversary of the , ithege's illegal UDI Those talsing part held placards calling on Smith to surrender and handed ouat leaflets which asked "Who are our Kith and Kin" and told people "Smith is Kidding You". Thhe vigil was supported by local Labour coun cilois, clergy, trade unionists, Communists and representatives of Birmigham's Peace Centre. Birmifigham groups have also written to West Midlands MPs askingthem to press for Britain to hand over power to the representa. tines of the majority in Zimbabwe and to oppose any further involvement in Kissinger's "diplomacy". Birmingham AA Group has been holding a series of open meetings on the situation in Southern Africa, aswell as collecting funds for Zimbabwean refugees and freedom fishers. A a--n If tvlttn ,oesmiii saisuia iasuiiism a meeting and film show on South Africa on Monday December 6at 8pmo at West Ham House, 169/175 Romford Road, London E1S. The group -s formed recently and AAM supporters in the area are urged to contact Graham Bramley, 50 Park Road, Stratford, London E15, Leeds LEEDS Anti Apartheid Group picketed tfTe Station Hotel, where South African immigration officials were trings Cu recrui scrileo Linus workers on November 11. Leeds AA Group is planning to picket Barclays Bank at the begin ning of December in the city centre. It is also holding two public mentiogs on December 15-at the University Students Union and LeedsTrgdes Club, at which the speakers will be Ruth First and Paul Blomfield. Contact: Jenny Warren, Acting Secretary, Leeds AA Group,144 Otley Rd, Leeds LSI65JX. Cardiff CARDIFF Anti Apartheid Group is holding a public meeting on Southern Africa on December 3 at Friends House, Charles Street, Cardiff. The group held a public meeting on Zitbesbwe on November 10 at which the speakers were Isaac Ncubi and another Zimbabwean exile. O December 17 it is arranging a meeting on Angola, and on December 15 it will hold its annual general meeting. Contact: Farida Hussein, 43 Ladysmith Rd, Penylan, Cardiff Tel Cardiff 40446, Gosport GOSPORT and Portsmouth Anti Apartheid Group isholding a meet. ing on Namibia-on January 21 at 7 pmr in the Coincil Chamber, 7 Towni Hall, Gosport. There mill be a showing of the film "Namibla A.Trust Betrayed" and the speakers Will be 'the Revd Michael Scott and a representative of SWAPO. Details Margaret Jeavons, Hon Secretary, Gosport & Portsmouth AA, 65 Harbour Tower, Trinity Green, Gosport, Hants. Ipswich IPSWICH Anti Apartheid Group will hold a meeting and film show in lpswich Town Hall on January B. There will be a showing of two films, "Katutuera" and the Thames larconi conspires with Anti-Ag artheid Movement has Marroni reacted prompty. Sir ad the series of manoeuvres, Arnold Weinstio, erLtiVe head id special pleading which led of GEC, wrote personally to Prime granting on October 25 of an Minister Callaghan, and they t licence to GEC-Marconi for secured the support of Conservale of mietry equipment to give MP Norman St John Stevas auth African Armnaments and Luabour MP Ben Ford, a former Marconi employee who December 1975 the first had visited South Africa as a guest :s appeared in the British ' of the South Africa Foundation. that Marconi had been. Cimpany management also ed a-contract to supply prepared a special memorandum ptberlc scatter mmuca- which was circulated to trade union equipmene to the South officials on May14 which sought an Armaments Board, to portraythe contract asa normal Reemeclear that the equip- civil one, It argued that the fact was to be used in Namilbia- that the Armaments Board was the the South African defence purchasing agency arose "purely are involved in a war against from administrative arrangements untry's liberation movement of the South African Government". 0.- On Juge 8 Marconi Communica vas then discovered that the tions Systems Ltd subrimitted an nentmas not subject to any export licence application to the nentexporticence require Department of Trade, It showed and could be freely exported that the South Africans planned to ith Afrijog in spite of the instal 10 links- five in South Africa, 051e_ 'arms embrgo policy, four in Namibie and one bridging t aftgr Protestg both the twoiq areas. ie ment,the Exiainmliawhythe Dbrchasina Birming 12 hour gn for Justice in Zimbabwe and Birmingbee for support for the liberation movements in general meeting last year, a resoletion asking it to end loans to South Atfrica received 3 million votes in favour-6 per cent of thetotal. Contact: ELTSA, 134 Wrottesley Road, London NW10. Tel Katherine Baxter, 0150 5311. AAPSO Meeting A three day Emergency Internatlonal Conference in Solidarity with the- People of South Africa was held from 30 October to 1 Nover-, bee in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. Convened by the Afro-Asian Peoples Solidarity Organisation and the African National Congress of South Africa, the conference brought together 1464delgate fronm 86 national orgaisatione from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the socialist countries and most of the anti apartheid movements in Western Europe. A far-ranging Programme of Action was.agreed by the conference and new initiatives proposed included a World Conference against Aplrtheid to be held next year in Western Europe and the establishment of an International TV documentary "South Africa: -There is no Crisis", followed by a discussion led by Paul Joseph. The meeting will be chaired by Canon Christian. Contact: Pamela Littlejohn, 5 Westerfield Rd. Ipswich. the bank to stop making Ioancto the South African Government, at its annual general Imeeting in April Signatories to ELTSA's letter include Judith Hart MP, Jeremy Thorpe MP, Bishop David Sheppard, GLC Lcader Sir Reg Goodwin, and the Leader of the West Midlands Cuncil, Sir Stanley Yapp. At Midland Bank's annual SA Government ted areas. The application also referred to interfaces with the South African Post Office network to "facilitate the civilian use of tropospheric scatter network". So pressure on the Government to refuse an export licence con tinued. But then on July 21, in a surprise mone, Marconi informed the Government that it wished to amend its application. It explained: "The South African Government has now decided that all filed commui cations within Sduth West Africa (Namibie) shall become the responsibility of the South African Post Office who will then provide any ecassarsi circuits for military users. As a consequence the Sooth African Armbaments Board has decided to redeploy all the , equipment covered by thisa expor t licence application to provide services withip the Republic." In one move th South Africans remived a major objection to the contract-that the equipm nt was to be installed in Namibia, and at the same time crelted a situation whereby any future order for similar equipment to be installed in Namibia would come from the Post Office. At the same time Mairconi was keepingup the pressure on the union officials representing the workers at its plant at Chelmsford where the equipment was to be manufactured. - Pointing to the £100 million worth of contracts Which GEC has received in the last year from South African Government agencies, it said that future contracts would be jeoperdised if the deal failed to go through. It also told its Workers that countries "like Nigeria, Egypt Libya, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and 0man" with which GEC wae also doing business hd no objection to the South African contract. In fact, in May this year the Nigerian Foreign Minister warned firms which supplied military equipment to SouthAfrica"ltWjllbeeitherSouthAfricaortherestofAfrica " So the British Government has yielded to pressure to allow the export of mifitaryequipment by a British firm to the Ssith,frican defence force-in spiteof the British arms embargo. ND -Apartheid Movem-n bald a abwe on November I1 Tribunal to investigate the crimes of apartheid. On the final day of the conference the people of Ethiopia expressed their solidarity with the struggle in South Africa when 80,000 attended a mass rally which was addressed by Alfred Nzo, Secretary-General of the ANC, together with speakers from MPLA, Cuba and Vietnam* Colleges which have SINCE the beginning of the academic year s udents all over Britain hane been taking action against British support for the Vorster Government and in support of the students and others who are demonstratig agahist apartheid in South Africa, 9 In moat of the universities which have holdings in firms with a South African stake, student unions have called on the authorities to sell their siares. 0 Barclays Bank has been boycotted by students all over the country because of the big role it plays in the apartheid economy, * On many campuses students have been raising funds for the Southern African liberation movements. How to step up action against Britain's links with apartheid will be debated in one of the prioritised motions at NUS National Conference in December-the first time for many years that an international resolution has been put before the conference, except as an emergency motion. Southern Africa has also become an important issue for the National Union of School Stadents. NUSS branches are campaigning against the opening of Barclays brancdhs on school premises The overall pattern of the tudent cansieign was dieclssed at a rimsting of thge Nt*S/AAliinetwork held in London on Nevember 14., Loughhoroug4 LOUGHBOROUGH University authorifies annouanced that they would disinvest from companies with a major sWake in Southern Africa, after a motion calling on them too so had been passed ovetwhelmingly by the students union. They were following thed example of Bath University which decided to sell its holdings in firms involved in Southern Africa in October.
MILITARY COLLABORATION C7AMPAIGN December 4: Day of ac*tioni againist British arms sales to South Africa. A mpass petitiontothe Labour Flarithst e SOGAT Club, street theatreshowgl infhe centre Govnen t csallinsg for the Strict Safford, on December 5. A~mong oft the town,, as we~llsdstributing implementation of the British the spseakers at the coference leaflHets and collecting signaatures to arms embargo will be launcphed in will lbe Jobs Gaesewe, General the petition. a weekend of activity all oerthe SecretanyofACTU,SWAPO SurreyAAMemberswillalso country, December 4 5. Publicity SecretaryPeter Katjavivi, be out on the streets eaf!aeting. In London antapartheid anssr"onNdhloavu. collectinsignaturesandselling sauppoters will be on the streets on In Glasgow theScottish Anti. ANTI APART1EID NEWS. Dece sber 4 collectisignatures, Apartheid Commitee is holding Durham Unive rsity Antileafleting and selling AA NEIWS in an>al-day conf ne>ce on Southernn Apnrtlhei Group will hold a pu bcl Haringey, Barnet, Camenn Kilburn, Afriaon December 4in the meeting on December 4. Hampstead and North Kensington. College of Technology. Other demonstrations and pulblic In Friends House, Finchley, there pI Brighton, ati-aparheid collections of signatures to the will be a photographic exhibition, su pporters wi Ilnounta mobile petitson will take place in Birmingand films and speakers throughout literature stall nd collect signatures ham, Nottingham, Middlesbrouglt the afternoon, tothepetitiononDeember4.On andOxford. In Camden, anti-apartheid Deember 3apublicmpetingon Comi'p meet' c supporters will be singingpolitical Southern Afria will be heldin as eetings "Christmas carols" as part of their Bightton Traead Labour Clalb. on Southern Afri'ca poster parade, and are holding a In Cardiff there will he a march public meetin9 in Friends Meeting through the town and a rally oan Camoden Anti-Apartheid Group, House. amstead, on December 3 December 4, and a public meeting December 3, 7.30 pm, Friends In Manchester here will be a in Friends House, Charles Street, Meeting House, Hampstead. picketoftheSouthAfricanAirways onDecember3. CardiffAnti-Apartheid Society, officeonDecember4andamajor Norwich anti-apartheid December3,FriendsHouse, conference "Southern Africa in supporters will be presenting a Charles St, Cardiff Brightop Anti-Apart eid Group, December 3, 8 pm, Trade and Labour Club. 15-16 Lewes Rd, Brighton Bristol University Students Union, December 4, Day School , Bristol University. Scottish Anti-Apaerteid Movement, December 4,10 am - 5 pm, College of Technology, Glasgow Manchester Anti-Apartheid Group, December 5, 10 am-5 pm. SOGAT Club, 4-8 George St, Chapel St, Salford London Students Organisation, December 5,10.30 am-5 pm. UCL, Gower St. London WC1 Newham Anti-Apartheid Group, December 6, 8 pm, West Ham House, 169/175 Rumford Rd, ,London E15 Lambeth Central Labour Party, Decemher 9, 8 pm, Brixton Training Centre (opposite Lambeth Town Hall), Brixton Hill, London SW2 Coventry Workers Association. December 10, 8 pm, General Wolf Public House, Coavntry sell shares in firms stake. in apartheid Students at Loughborough have also been picketing the town branch of Barlays Bank and are planning to set up an anti-apartheid group in the town, Durham DURHAM students are to pUit a resolution calling on the university authorities to disinvest from companies involved in Southern Africa to a meeting of their Union Council in December. Two Barclays Bank branches-on the campus and in Durham-will be the target of student pickets on December 3. UCL STUDENTS at University College London heidi fund-raising evening for their South African Scholarship Appeal on November 29. They are also campaigning against the college's holdings in companies which operate in Southern Africa. LSE LSE students will hold a day of action on Southern Africa on December 3, which will include a teach-in during the morning, a lunch time meeting with SASO Vice President Diamini Nkoszane and an evening social with music by the.South African jazz musician Louis Moholo. I London LONDON Studrits Drganisation will hold a one-day seminar on Southern Aftrica on December 5 at University College London. There will be films, speakers and work shops on the current situation in Southern Africa and campaigns in Britain. Birmingham BiFIMINGHAM Polytechnic students are planning a week of action on Southern Africa, December 5 12. During the week they will picket the South Afrcar, Airways building in Birmingham and hold a fund-raising event for the Southern African liberation movements, The week will end with a public meeting on Southern Africa in Digeth Civic Hall on December 12. Surrey SURREY University students held a meeting on Southern Africa on November 15. at which it was decided to investigate the very close links which the university has with South African institutions. Oxford * AN Anti Apartheid Society has been formed at Oxford University. It is planning to boycott branches of Barclays Bank during the week November 21 28.Lanchester A DAY School on Southern Africa is being organised at Lanchester Polytechnic on December 4. Lanchester students have also been picketing local social lubs wsich operate a colour bar. USI THE Irish Students Union, USI, is holding a wedk of action on Southern Africa, December 6-10. It will mount a photographic exhibition in University College, Dublin, on December 6, man literature stalls in five Dublin colleges on December 8, and h.]ld a public meeting on Southern Africa at University College, Dublin. Goldsmiths STUDENTS at Goldsmiths College. London. have formed an Anti-Apartheid Society. Other universities and colleges where meetingsand activities on Southerin Africa are being planned include Teesside Polytechnic. University of Warwick, Polytechnic of Ceral London, Birmindlam Polytechnic and University of Est Angilia. I am totalyopp.W t hesaleofarmsto Sout Afriauad beivethatUte emiapeonalli aindlceequipmentand endalmilitaryclab withtheapartid regme. I-suprt a mandutory 11nitui Nations anus mniainst South Aid. NAME A S iIfe hold a mb.s in rvorganisatinn plea giau deails Petitio to th British Government for rmtatio 0in 21 Mar 1977 - thu seveeaoth larli ery of the Slarpenilie mavawe. H/irls sognd l.,s ...... rat ion oufseif, a od os I fh s . Autdi w "fors arm ai lbe uo request and Ili nun be st.rved to s ad-sbelow ife iyn prially ompleted) by if MARCH 1977Z ....the Anti-ApartheidMovement lv -J .89CharlotteStreet LondonWIP2DQTel5805311 Birmingham Polytechnic Students Union, December 12, 7pm, Dighpth Ciic Hall, Birmingham. Young M mpam, December 12, 8 pi, 3 Soadhurst Gardens, London NW6 Leeds Anti-Apartheid Group. December 15, 8 pro, Leeds Trades Club, Leeds Brixton Communist Party, December 16, 7.30 pm, Brixton Training Centre (opposite Lambeth Town Hall), Brixtop Hill, London SW2 Ipswich Anti-Apartheid Group, January 8, 7.30 pm, Ipswich Town Hall, Gosport and Portsmouth Anti. Apartheid Group, January 21, 7 pm, Town Hall, High St, Gosport Solihull Constituency Labour Party, January 27, 8 pro, Manor House, High St, Solihull Birmingham University Fabian Society, January 29. Details: Students Union, Birmingham University, Edlbston Park Rd, Birmingham 15.
Unions t l trd uno ndlbu movement attended the AntiApartheid Movement conference on Southern Africa and the British Labousr Move. ment, held in L6ondon on November 6. It was the first time ever that so many union representatives-from shop floor up to National Executive level-had met to discuss how they could best act in solidarity with their brother workers in Southern Africa. Opening the meeting, the President of the ILO, Michael O'Leary, said that the time had come for trade unionists to get past the 'resolutions stage" and to begin to exert pressure on the issue from the shop floor. "It is important for the trade union movement to come to its Own conclusions about its role," he added. The demands of black workers 'in South Africa were set out by John Gaetsewe, General Secretary of SACTU (South African Congress of Trade Unionsh. He called on the British Governwent to stop new investment in South Africa, to end its subsidies to trade missions there and not to give export credits. He appealed to workers to protest against the manufacture and transport of goods for South Africa and to refuse to handle them. Looking back at the uprising in South Africa of the last few months,he said: "The black people themselves are pointing out the way ahead. There is no substitute for the mass action of the oppressed people themselves" "We need the solidsr ty of the international working class," he said. Outlining the issues before thh conference, Ruth First said that it must discuss the links bet'een Britain's economic crisis arid its role as an investor in apartheid. She said that the British and South African working classes faced a common enemy, giving as an example GEC which has doubled its profits sine 1967 and pays a top rate of £Z45 a week to its African emplbyees in South Africa. In three commissions delegates discussed the role of multinational corporations in Britain and Southern Africa; the British crisis and the apartheid economy; and forms of solidarity action. High on the list of the priorities Ifor action recommended by the commissions were a campaign iagainst emigration by British :workers to South Africa, an end to links between the TUC and the, white-domirnated Trades Union Council of South Africa, disinuestwtent by British unions of shares in firms with major holdings in South ,Africa, and a boycott of South African goods. Other points raised by the commissions were the need to link .,the fight against racialism in Britain with the struggle against British asupport for apartheid, the importance of campaigning within the EEC and of international rank and file solidarity action. Summing up the work of the ommissions, the Deputy General Scretar of AUEW (TASS), John *orrester, declared: "Apartheid will be ended by the armed struggle of the African people. It is our responsibility to ensure that the forces of li ration are given all the shop floor action Urgent moves needed to end SA links Leyland steward asstance that can be green by the British w riig class." Abdul Mthty, Hon Secretary of the 'Anti-Apartheid Movement, said that the people of Southern Africa were now facing a crucial phase of their national liberation. struggle. 'This had Produqed a crisis in the capita cities of Western countries which supported the white minority regimes. He quoted US . Secretary of State Kissinger as saying that he had tUndertaken his shuttle diplomacy in Africa 'to ensure that we are able to control the situation there becavse we are in danger of losing control". He sharply attacked the Labour Government's decision to grant a licence to Marconi for the export of communications equipment to the South AfricanArmaments Board and appealed to delegates to support the Labour Party Solidarity Fund. Greetings were brought to the conference by Andrew Kailebo of-the ICFTU and Gerry Pocock of the WFTU: It was chaired by lan Mikardo MP, chairman of the NEC of the Labour Party's International Commirttee and John Miller of the TGWU' Among the 26 trade unionsrepresented at the meeting by delegates from their National Executives were the local govern. went officers' union NALGO; the General and Municipal Workers; the cgginri-tg, constructionffarid supervisory sections of AUEW; Nationaul Umcira of TeacheBro and Steel Trades Cofedner;1.1 iland Revenue Staffs Federation and the Society of ivil Servgels; the agric1lteral w-r-ersunion NUAAW, the FirA Brigades..lUnion, and tle Tbaccvto Wais~ I- in. The mineworkers union was represnted by dielegates froms its Scottish, Yorkshir, an1 Soiuth Wel"sares The Scottih TUC sept its Depuaty General Secretry,. James Kirkwood of the TG /U.' Mny Shop sttraeds committeesmereal e en them, Leyland Ltd trade union committee and the Triumph Motors shop steweds committee ...... Altogether 146 delegates ace from trade union area committees ,and local branches. including London, Birmingham and Manchester regions of the Transport and General Workers Union; AUEW branches in Brighton, Coventry, Gravesend and Southampton; NALGO branches at the Greater London Council, Institute of Education, London and Glasgow; and the UPW Overseas Telephones branch. The clerical workers union CPSA and ASTMS were Particularly strongly represented by delegates fro branches all over the country. Representatives also came from 36 trades councils and 24 consttui ency Labour Parties. . Among the eight Co-operative Societies who sent delegates were the London Co-operative Society, Royal Arsenal Co- operatiue Society and Lincoln and Greater Nottingham Societies. National organisations represented at the meeting included the Association of Liberal Trade Unionists, Joint Caribbean Associa tion, Amnesty Internationa, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and the Narnibia Support Committee. Representatives also came from the African National Congress of South Africa and SACTU. In all this the AAM has committed itself to Providing campaigning material. The Labour Movement must respond, In the Conway Hall we made a beginning. Many delegates were shocked at the xteet of the active collaborationmilitary and economic with South Africa. All of us went away even more determined to encounter the real problems that there are and the illusory ones, presented for instance by employers who attempt to blackmail British workers with talk of job losses. It will take a great deal of such determination and on the part of many more than these 280 delegates. But we know that it must be done and we know that it can be done. The message that we need to send out now is to the British Government: "End British support for apartheid". The promise that we make is that pressure for such a change will keep on increasing. The task we set ourselves is to ensure that such pressure can no longer be ignored. Resolutions of support for the Leyland Limited Trade Union Committee in their stand on sales to South Africa should be addressed to Les Curl, 8 Turner Close, City View Estate, Cowley, Oxford. Miners protest curtails S African tour THE National Union of Mine. workers is to protest to the Government about a visit to British coalfields by top South African coal executives last month. The coal chiefs came to study new developments in British mineral technology, especially the high. production, long-wall faces operated by the National Coal Board. Their visit had the blessing of the National Coal Board and the British Overseas Trade Board. In Yorkshire the South Africans were forced to cancel tours of two pits, because of protests by local miners, Scotish miners also called for the cancellation of the visit. In Nottingham, local trade unionists mounted an all-day picket of the hotel where the South African mission was staying on November 13. The picket was called by Nottingham and District Trades Council and was supported by students from/ Loughborough and Trent Poly, hchnics Placards carried by the demonstrators told the South Africans "No welcome for apartheid, visitors" and "One Rake- the Human Race" Workersask Leyland to help banned leader ' LEYLAND Ltd Trade Union Committee, the national, shop stewards committee which covers all Leyland plants, has asked Lylad managereent to intervene wi th the South fican Government on behalf oftweo black trade union leaders who have been served with banning orders. Al[)h .s ,sthutwe, Geagrah Secretary of the- Metal and Allied Workers Union, which has organised workers at Leyland's South African plants, and Sipho Khubeka, the union's Johannesburg branch secretary, were among 13 officials of trade unions and relation organisations who were banned in midNovember, The Ansti Apavhe d Movement has urged the TUC to py6test to the South African Government against the bans It has also asked Industry Secretary Eric Varley to protest to the South Africr n Government at the-banning of the two Leyland employees and to request Leyland management to do the same. sees tO rigst: Hate Fleel, Ian Mikardo tP, Michael O'Leary and John Gaetse "Southern Africa and the British Trade Union and Lahour Movement" organ Movement on November ', LEY LAND shop stewards have the British Labour Movement and said thattheywill black parts that it comes as qi ckly as possible. forSouthAfricaifLeyland But the links, as became clear continues to refuse to recog- at the confereeva, are riot only nise the black Metal and Allied Leyland's. They exuend into every Worker'sUnio.PETER sphereofourlives-and SO must our NI HeLASi, emberof actwity.Attheconfereathere Le land Limbe o was detailed discussion on what we SfrgTradeUnion, coulddoheretostepupthe Commsitte alls for greater 'consumer boycott, promote recog solidarity action with nition-of trade unions end trade C|arekW le South missionsandexportcredit Africa. guarantees,discourageemigration, THERE ISan arltent need for curb the activities of the multieffetveyaction by British trade nationals, implement an effective unionusts to end Britain's links with cultural boycott. aset treld Southf Alrica-that was There were manyother points, the message thutI took awaywith but most of all we mere concerned me from the Anti Apartheid Move- to see the implementation of those merit's trade union conference last resolutionswhichsowanyunionsmonth, andnowtheTUChavecarried, In Leyland we are all too well urging an end to all new investaware-of the nature of those links ment and the immediate withdrawal and we have called on the British of British publicly-controlled firms, Labour Movementtogiveus nowLabour Party policy. maximum support, at everylevel, Trade unions have often taken to enable us to carryout our good positions on these questions. policy of blacking sales to South Now it is time, not for "resolution Aftica In protest at Leyland's ary change", as one speaker put it, refusal to recognise the Metal and but for a dual campaign that is Allied Workers Union there concerned to raise these issues in Because we are also aware of the trad~e union branches and districts problems involved incarrying out andensure an understanding of the effective action, we are particularly* extent of these links and on the concerned that such support is other to convert sympathy into forthcoming from all sections of action.
Schools llinJl as students call for Xmas boycott SOUTH African students are still staying away from school in support of their demand for the releaSe ofkthe thousands being held in police custody. SIn owet. ftudeuts have mounted an ,aimost total boycott of ei ms and callnd for a fine'day stay-away by workers for the first week of Novnmber They have also appealed for a Christmas shopping boycott-a leaf let distributed by the Soweso Students Representative Courcil says: ". all things thaf we enfoy moss be suspended for she sake of our kids who died from police bullets. lhey are calling for the ban also as a reprisal against the many emoployers who have dis missed workers or docked their wages because they went on strke in nattier stay at homes, In the Vaal complex of towns, students have alipaaled to residents to boycotJ government-run liquor stores as a token of mourning for those who have died and in solidari. ty wih those in detentive AIn thePretori township of Atterrdgeville all secondary schools have been closed after students dis- THE South African authoritiesare hitting back against the continuing black uprising against apartheid with increasing ruthless ness, In the last month * Police have been making house-to-house arests of school students in Soweto and other townships-many children, from the age of eight years upwards, have, disappeared without trace. * More known black community leaders have been detained. " Savage fiveyear gaol senteneI have been passed on demonstrators-and many more are now being charged under the Sabotage Act which provides for long gaol terms. In Soweto in the first week of November police detained an unknown numier of school students in houseto- house ra dsthey wera aged between 15 and 18. A week before they surrounded nhe Morris Isaacoon High School. and arrested 16 teachers and 62 rupted the writing of exants. Polce fired on pupils at MaeoIdi High School after they stoned police cars and buses In the Cape the United Students --front involving African, Colourngl ard Indian students issued a lint of demands on October 24 among whinch were one a al educational system for all races, theabo1itiIn of the pass laws and the relnase of all political prisoners. On October 12, 500 Africans from the Cape Town t-ownships of Langa and Guguletu set our tn match to the Coloured Athione township as an act of solidarity with Coloured tudents. They were dispersed by police teargas ond baton chargee . In Guguletu township police opened fire on a crowd ofver 1,000 people who were marching agaist a police station on October 25. Cape Towv students base also mountvd a big campaign to destroy government beethalls-they say "swe believe ,ebeens have got to be stopped vow and for good because I they are undermining the black man In hssndteds of separate incident- pupils. The teachers were later released, but the students are still being detained. Many cther teacbers are now being detained in schools where students have staged exam boycotts ,ANOTHER detainee is now known to have been murdered by the South African security police-the sixth since June. He is William Tshwane, a Soweto student, whose father was informed of his death o October 14. Police told his family that they could not be given his body, as he had already been buried and "nothing more could be done about it"or have stayed away from school altogether. In Cape Town the police hate, been arresting black clergymen. apparently because of the role they have been playing in organilsing legal defence for arrested students. Among others known to have We must put armed struggle first, say ANC. executive 7E launching of ai-meftrogg/e in South Africa is tow the most ufgent priority for the h0efatioru from the Afron National Congress oanal Executfie Cniti-ee. It deecribes corrent evenots in Soth Africa as "ar uprrsing in'voi thn it, up-ii,s"as of revialiuonary mse s" veal np that5 r , fssterrgine has been unable to contain tie situation. "Our Revolutionary Cpuncil eer beet pelse c to-ivib-taies, e...rY bit 0 f Its actavities no teia1eetqieffiri of the launers.a all -virthe, country gideenmene institutions have been attackedsomeimes by mass demtonstrations and 'tnetirges by smaller groups of nilitants. SInthe most serious attack, the JabulaniPolice Station in Soweto was extensively damaged by a bomb ot October 25, and at the .same. time several yards of railway track and a signal box were blown lap. B An official in the Department of Banta Adnnistration in Guguleta Cape Town, was shot with his own a pistol and stabbed at the end of Oqtober The po ice are reactng by firing indiscriminately into crowds and by carrying out mass arrests of school students In- Soweto onOtoter 23 at least six people were shot dead ard ovt 50 Wounded when polich openetl fire without any wearning on a peace fu funeral prtcession i r Jacob Maashbarie, a detained student who was murtiend by the secui, ty plice Police stayted shooting as school childreg and paren, ent-d the cemetery gate behind ftie olliv- the the cuff is was left half buri ed as people ucauttDed and ael for cyner. been detained in October and November were the new Acting President of the BPC. Nat Serache, who had already been in and out of detention twice; Sally Motlana, Vice President of the All-African Council of Churches; and two leaders of the Black Workers Union, Sidney Zotwana and Alistatr Mxagwana . Many convicted demonstrators -are now in prison serving gaol terms under the Sabotage Act, In Germiston six young black demonstrators were convicted of having set fire to a shopping centre and sent to prison for five years Fourteen school students from Moentshiura near Mafeking have been charged under the Sabotage Actiwith destroying the legislative assembly building in the SBtphuthaTswana "homeland" last August. The son of the "homeland's" Chief Minister, Lucas Mangope, was among those charged, but allegations against him and two others have been withdrawn, Altogether 3,000 people are facing trial on charges arising out of the demonstrations, according to figures compiled by the South African Institute of. Race Relations. The numbee who have already-been convicted now stands at 1,281-986 Cape Town " i Black journalists held in press gag WHATEVER impression the vut side world is gaining of events in South Africa since June l6 is obviously increasingly inadequate as the press, already severely restricted, has become one of the prime targets of Goermet repression. At feast 16 black lournalists are now knowji1 to have been dela'wed in a despnirte bid by the authorities to suppress nemfof what is actually happening Since w.hiten ore not allowed into black areas, the main source of information fo-local and foreig press is black )outhste who are attempting to expo, police brutality, unp-voked attacks on peaceful dnonstrations. the clear political direction of black activists as'opposed to their porbrayal by some w" itQ iOvualivts and the police as "ampaging mobs" One of the latest detainees, Nat Seruche, a s a repoter for the Rand Daily Mail had exposed the role, of the police v organisiog migrant" labourers at a hostel to attack students calling for a stri ke Serache, who had frequently con tributed to the BBC resigned from the RaidI Dail, tail a month . before his arrest to become acting president of the Black People's Convention Rand Daily Mail photographers Petet Magubane and WillieNkosi were also detained, after weeks of police harassmnt and assaults as they tr ed to Ihrtograph prirce viole nce. Aother newspaper whose black rvpotters have been intimidated and finally detained, one after the otheri the forld a whit-owned. black ran daily, whose cic ulaton bus soared in recent months from 105,000 to 175,000 222,000. Five of its Dournaists Arthur Molafe, Moffat Zungu, Cod Mohloni, Willie Boholo andE Ndhlovu - were arrested on and are being held under the Intenl Security Act Slack, and sympathetic wl journalists or newspapers (l are all whute-orned), besides Spuohislies a journal soon utter June 16 of reports they had submi tted to their papers but which had not been published the IosiraI-la, immediately banned, and many of the UBJ leaders, including their presidefnt Joe Thloloe. have been detained Stricter control of local white and fein jotoralists also seems likely. Recently South Africanhorn British journatlist Ovenis Hebstein was issued with a temporary residence prmit which gave him five days to leane the country. Herbstein had been working for The Guardian, T1e SIda, Times and the BBC Around he same time the Supreme Court decided Ir resere vudgmenton an appeal by whi e Iewspaper editor, Donald Woods, of the East London Daily Dispatch, who was sentenced to sin months imprisonment for relsine to reveal the identity of an infoernotwho fad told him secuity police ativity. Police get away with murder of detainee POUR South African security policemen have been acquitted of the culpable hiiiicide of Juseph Mdluli, who died under polce interrogation ov March 19 His body was seen by his wife, Lydia Mdluli, who later Wadea sworn statemnt that he appeaed -A Goern nt pathol erging ful been caused ban "a blunt forcee thigh, calf, , left shoulde deep bruisit cage, The jUdcg evidente thi -Aparehr Mass arrests of school students and teachers stina . Smith's troops in invasion bid HE Smitl full-scale Rhodesian troops cr Gaza province just afte tanks, mortars, cannron infantry and mounted t The invasion force attempting to advance the town of Mapai and Malvernia-Mapai railwa the Rhodesian forces e 4 am and advanced tow 'Positions. At Mapai the troops fire on a passenger train was standing in the stat auelched 18 people and wounding others. of The station master at Map'i later nces of decribed how theythen went on etober 31 the rampagearound the town, Sprovinc Opening rire with machine gus on most of the houses and setting ossed into fire to them. r 5 am With He saidthatthetroops were aircraft, travelling in military vehicles and rops, tanks with forged Mozambique was ArmedForcesnumberplates. towards Another wounded survivor of the to cut the attack on MaPai aid that some of v. In Tete' the attackers spoke Portuguese ntered at and were apparently Portuguese iards five mercenaries in the pay of the Smith regime. opened In Manica province Rhodesian which troops attacked the town of ion, killing Machipunda, about 90 km from the provincial capital Chimolo onthe Salisbury-Beira rail link. According to a report on Mozambique radio they shelled the town twice with mortars and heavy arms, bt were driven back across the border In Tete province the Rhodeslans attackeda FRELIMO military base 55 miles from the border, aclcording to a Mozambique Information Agency comunique. 'Smith's troops slaughtered the residents as they went sowing destruction and stealing property:' it said. Altogethe; 8 FRELIMO soldiers-two of them women-, were killed in the fighting in "f'ete SA paper hushed up news of attack THE Rand Daily Mail knew that Rhodesians to abandon their I which the information placed she the Smith regime was planning to plans and so make the report newspaper, the Rand Daily Mail invade Mozambiquenearlythree untrue, asks:"Shouldonepublishthe weeks before the invasion took This was although the report secret military plans of a friendly place, according to the news- received by the newspaper said neighbouring state? Would pesblipaper s editor iRaymond LoUw. that not only Mozambique, but cation cause a-dangerous increase But he decided notto publish also Botswana and possibly in tensions, perhaps abort the the story on the grounds thaft the Zambia were to be the targets of coming Geneva talks or even repercusoisof"publication Rhodesianattacks. causeapre-emptive strike against would be so great as to force the Commenting on the dilemma in Rhodesia itself?" according to thi Mozambique Government. A Mozambituet Government spokesman said that the Rhodesian attacks were against Mozambican installations and transit camps used by Zimbabwean guerrillas. He said that the invasion had not harmed the fighting capacity of ZIPA (Zimbabwe People's Army) as no guerrillas remained in the transit camps when they came under attack, and the few permanent guerrilla base camps in Mozambique were far away from the border in places which could not be attacked. The Presidents of Mozambique Tanzania, Zambia and Angola held an emergency meeting in Maputo on November 7 to discuss the attacks. IN A statement in, Maputo, the British Ambassador to Mozam. bsque, John Lewen, said that the British Government condemned the aggression committed by the Smith regime. But he said that although the British Government has responsi bilities under international law with regard to Rhodesia, it "exercises no power of any kind within Rhodesian territory't - Freedom fighters step up attacks. as Smith twists and turns at Geneva AS the talks in Geneva founder the guerrillas of the liberation movements fight on inside Zimbabwe. KEES MAXEY reviews the progress of the war and the strategy of the freedom fighters. WHEN the leader of the rebel regime in Rhodesia spoke to his fellow whites in September, he made it clear that white rule "could expect no help or support of any kind from the free world". He was therefore forced to makea tacticpl retreat and to concede "majority rule" (but of a special kind) within two years. The reason for this retreat can only be the escalation of the guerrilla struggle, especially since the beginning of this year. The war has spread, since January, down the eastern border with Mozambique, across the southern pat of Rhodesia to the border wih Botswana, and along the Zambian border in the north The focus has remained the north eastern area. There have been reports of guerrilla activity in Salisbury and Bulawayo-not just in the border town of Uwtal:. Many people in Britain may have wondered why, when Smith has seemingly thrown in the spdnge, the guerrillas have conI ri1U veen fiohe Th, -- n , with leaflets telling them to lay down their arms and give them.selves up. But the regine's soldiers did not lay down their arms. The only major victory was that thousands of young Africans crossed the border, mainly to Mozambique but some to Botswana, to get military training with the Zimbabwe Peoples Army (ZIPA). Thisexodus of young men is still continuingaccordingto the regime, 700 left between June and October. Those who went lest year are now coming back as fighters. The British press, when-it does report anything, reports enormous casualties by the guerrillas but " quite light ones for the Rhodesian security forces. These figures are from the regime and are highly suspect. Firstly, the regime does not report allof its own casualties. It slipped up last year when a reporter from the Rhodesia Herald interviewed African members of the General Service Unit, She described the death of a sergeant in a rqad "accident"his vehicle hit a mine on the northern border while carryingammunition, and he was killed. This "accident" was never reported at all at the time it took place. Secondly, "terrorists" whor it claims to have killed are very often not freedom fighters st all. For evumple, 300 refugees who were amog the 700 or more killed at the Nyaonla camp ir Mozambique in August are always added to the total of guerrillas the regime claims to have killed. Many others killed are not guerrillas-as is described in this issue of AA NEWS What is the strategy of the guerrilla army? Their-policy is to establish "semi-liberated zones" They have not established an administrative or political infrastructure in these areas-but they are areas where the enemy, the white regime, has no control whatever. According to a ZIPA spokesman, in these zones "the masses are fully mobilised and orgnised by the freedom fighters. We also feel that establishing liberated areas at this stage would be presenting the enemy with many targets vulnerable to air strikes'. Tactically, they are attacking communications, both rail and road. Curfews 'and convoys are the rule on many roads all over AAM protests THE AntiApartheid Movement has protested to the BBC and the IBA about their news coverage of the situation in Zimbabwe and especially of the white . inrity regime's invasion of Mozambigue. In a letter to the Chairinan of the BBC Boards of Gvernors, Sir Michael Swan, od to the Chair man of the IBA, Lady plowden, the Movement says that .4 Ih recived constant complaints from is /mbers ttmany news Rhodesia. They are attacking and destroying many bridges, including a number of railway bridges, as " well as-mbushing ears and lorries. They have also made a concerted attack on the European farms. These white farms are crucial to the regime-they act as outposts, being in radio contact with the security forces, and they act as a settler presence over large areas of the country, They also repre sent the backbone of the Rhodesian Front, and are the epitome of the exploitative economic system of Rhodesia. In a letter to the Rhodesia Herald at the end of September, "One of the Territorials" (a nor de plume) wrote: "Is itworth doing my next call-up in twomonths' time, because I don't want to-ose my life or perhaps spend it in a wheelchair, only to see the leaders of this country sitting around a table with terrorists?" on coverage r-ports are "little more than a repetition of statements and claims by the illegal Smith regimet" It says that there is ample evidence from independent sources within Rhodesia, as well as from the Mozambique Governmont and the Zimbabwean liberation miovemients to show how the Smith reg/me de/iberate/y distorts f reporting of events in eider to justify its repressive o'lties. Britain: THE Patriotic Front, an alliance formed by the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANUI under the leadership of Robert Mugabe and the African National Council of Zimbabwe led by Joshua Nkomo, has made it quite clear what its objective has been in taking part in the Geneva conference. It is to negotiate the transfer of, power in Zimbabwe from Britain, the colonising power, to representatives of the black majority. Iv,a statement at the opening of the conference, Joshua Nkomo said: "The simple arid straightforward issue before the conference is that of the traisfer of power from the coloniser, the United Kingdom Government, to the people of Zimbabwe through a process of decolonisation." At the same time Riobert Mugabe declared: "The theme of the conference must be the transference of power and the achievermeet of independence." There is nothing in the record of successive British administrations since Smith 's illegal declaretion of independence in 1965, to give the liberation movements any reason to trust in the good faith of the British Govbrnment. On the contrary, throughout those 11 years British Goweonments hve sought ouly to talk to Smith and to do a deal essentially on his terms. Nor has the Labour Govem ment given any real evidenceof a change of heart in the last few months-in going along with Kissinger's "diplomacy" it has been aiding and abetting his search for a ieo colonialist solution in Zimbabwe, Nationalists Stop So-the Pattlotic I tence that Britain si a date for indepetrd intransigence which portrayed as in tiel It is a necessary pre any other discusior transitional steppiml to majority rule. If theBritish Go really committedto tion-why can itnoi date? In fact, the re Labour Governimn towards the Smithsv still not preperedto that there is no role his henchmen int Zimbabwe and that wholly in the hads tion movements. It has still nots there is an armedi Zimbabwe and that because he is blier that Smith agreed ti negotiating table. Joshua Nkomo f clearly, saying: "We this conference as a sweat, blood andto people in the stripgg liberation and inder Zimbabwe, our mat "Our delegation to discover the depl message of the at-k sunk to ensure the i unfettered indepent people of Zimbabw At the beginning ence the joint detg Patriotic Front put series of demands ti ence chairman, Ivor It celled for 0 the release of detaineesesfr of poe oteIpepeoAb~ Release. them now! 3000 hostages These Mozambican soldiers are stationed near the Rhodesian border to repel any furtherattempts at invasion by Smith troops Smands to m Smith regim put their de P supporting I Front's insis- required by the liberation sould agree to movementstojoin confer. sdenceis not the ence delegations. ch it has been - an end to the massacres .,ritish press. and genocide being perperecondition for trated in Zimbabwe bythe in about the racist regime. whichwilllead *theappointmentofa member of the British ;overnment'is cabinet aschairmanofthe to decolonisa- conference. Sotnamethe 0clarificationofBritain's roleatheonference as the sot lies in the colonial power with the mst's attitude cleardutyto decolonise rliegime:itis Zimbabwe. to recognise Theyweretoflthat the British tle for Smith and Government would refer their erandependent demand for the release of detainat the future lies les and for an end to the massacres d of the liberat to the "'Proper authorities". On their demands that Britain resognised that should make it clear that it was struggle in accepting its full responsibility as it is only at the conferehce-Ivor Richard 1gin this struggle to come to the Teenagers ! I put this point Ne have come to a result of the THE Geneva conference has toil of our provided the Smith regime with ggle for the an opportunity to divert attenlependence of tion awayfrom its repressive potherland. olicies inside Rhodesia. nhacomeher SinceSmith's broadcast on itha o herthe September 20, claiming to have nth to which the accepted the principle of majority a immediate rule, dozens more Zimbabweans ndence of the have beenarrested and detained, beaten up, wounded and killed ig of the confer- bythe securityforces sgation of the The Rhodesian army itself . forward a admits to having shot dead at to the confer least 35 people in the course of tor Richard. the last few weeks, whom it arrogantly dismisses as having if political been apprehended "in a curfew specially those area at night", who "faeild to stop when cha.lnged" or who told them that he was "vested with full powers". Far from being intransigent, all the African nationalist delegations, those led by Bishop Abel Muzorewa and Ndabaningi Sithole, as well as those of Robert Mugabe and Joshua Nkomo, agreed to go ahead with the talks. In contrast, the Smith regime has exposed its real intentions. A memo of a speech made by the regime's deputy Minister of Defence, Ted,,Eurstaoprice, to al Rhodesia Front meeting on October stealed its secret plan., If the regime did not like whatever constitution' was agreed after two years it could reject it. He went on: "At worst we would be in a better position to fight the war. "We would have ... two years trading on an open market. Revive the economy with the two, billion dollars develotnent fund, hunted and were otherwise considered to be "acting suspiciously". Despite an increasingly fierce clampdown on press reports from the war zones (the Rhodesian press has, for example, ceased reporting the outcome of trials of captured freedom fighters and villagers inrthe war zones before the nevSpecial Courts), it is clear that large numbers of refugees and young people anxious to join the freedom fighters are crossing the borders into Mozambique and Botswana, while others less fortunate are continuing to be herded into concentration canups or "protected villages", The regime-has now mitro Two years to build up arms and war materials and the a ed forces. The market for recruiting into the forces would have widened." As ANTI-APARTHEID NEWS goes to press, the Geneva confer. ence seems near to deadlock. If the talks do break down the blame will rest on the British Government which still, even as the log struggle of the people of Zimbabwe for their freedom enters mto its final stage, has refused to turn is back on the white settlers there and opt to support the forces fighting for democracy and basic human rights. The Smith regime will continue to regard the Geneva talks /as a cynical manoeuvre unless the British Government openly accepts its responsibilities as the colonial power. killed duced a new grade of African "district security assistant", specially trained in anti-guerrilla warfare, to help "protect" civilians in the protected villages. The attitude of the security forces towards the African majority was well illustrated in a recent BBC interview with a British mercenary member of the Rhodesian Light Infantry. In his view, freedom fightets and their supporters Were "wild animals", fit onlyfor extermination. At the same time he admitted that the "enemy" he was hunting and killing were in many eases boys of no more than 14 years old. 'in Smith BETWEEN 1,750 and 3,000 Zimbabweans are incarcerated in Smith's gaols because of their opposition to the regime -most of them held indefinitely. They include * 58 men who are under sentence of death. * at least 960 people held in detention under the Emergency Powers assumed by the illegal regime at UDI, * at least 750 people serving prison sentences imposed, in the vast majority of cases, under the regime's Law and Order (Maintenance) Act. -In a special report "Ian Smith's Hostages: Political Prisoners in Rhodesia", the International Defence and Aid Fund has listed nearly 1,700 people known to be held as political prisoners in Zimbabwe in October 1976. Among them are men and women from all walks of lifeteachers, do/ctors, students, shopkeepers, industrial workers and farmerg, from all parts of Zimbabwe. Many of them, says the Report, are people who have been in and out of prisons and detention camps for over a decade: others are teenagers who would barely remember UDI in 1965. They represent a sizeable kroportion of a relatively small pepulatior-their equivalent in British terms would be around 18,000 political prisonersin E-gland, Scotland and Wales. "I have nothing against the white Man or the, Security Forces of this country. The fight was simply directed against the law, the law which opprtes other people in this country, the law that is d'scriminatory." Sly Masuku, Salisbary High Court, August 1968 Above all, the Report lists the names of the 58 men who are under sentence of death-a penalty imposed illegally by the Smith regime in defiance of international law. The majority of these men may already be dead-after hangings which constitute acts of murder carried out in secret in Salisbury prison. Since April 1975 convicted prisoners have been hanged in secret in the prison, with little advance warning, and allegedly during the night. On April 21 1975 the regime's Ministry of Justice announced that in future no public announcements would be issued when executions had been carried out, on the grounds that the hangings were an "emotive issue", The Ministry subsequently confirmed that once an appeal against the death ser-tesce had been dismissed, it most be assumed that evecutin would follow without delay. The Law and Olrder (Muinten 's gaols "ance) Act has been amended so that the death penalty can now be imposed for a wide range of offences, including the aiding and abetting of guerrilla fighters. I The Report tells the story of two men from the Muroma Tribal Trust Land, Basopa Munyama and Rodreck Tikabva, who were sentenced to hang by a Special Court in Umtali on July 21 1976. They were convicted of inciting a group of guerrillas to execute two African police constablesand were sentenced to death although the police constables later escaped unharmed. "Because we are not accepted as sons of Zimbabwe, we are insulted by being called terrorists. If this word meant a wild person who kills other people, what is the white man to be called, since he came into this country armed and killing people and he is still doing so? While I am fighting for the truth, the white man is fighting for the wealth of Zimbabwe." ZANU guerrilla, ulawayo High Court, November 1968 The Report also documents appalling conditions-especally overcrowding and wanton brutality-in the prisons and detention camps. A detainee writes from Gwelo prison: "We live in cramped and crowded conditions, four men to a cell 10 ft by 8 ft. Gapinga foot or so from where a man is sleep ing is a toilet bucket." A former inmate of Khami prison, nowdetained after cam pIeting hin-sentence, sayn: "Circumstances and conditions were so punitive and acrocioia.., I suffered internafdamage as a result of some brutal beatings and barbarous torture, The aftermath is that I am a moving grave," The Report says that the release of some leading political figures at the time of the Lusaka talks in 1974 may have-given the impression that the Smith regime has relaxed its oppression of itv political opponents. But in fact the retire has totally ignored the undertakings it gave in the Lusaka Agreemen to revoke the death sentences and grant a political amnesty, and since the breakdown of the 1974 constitutional talks the regme has become steadily more repressive, The Report concludes that Smith's political privoners "are a vital element in the future of Zimbabwe. For years the Rhodesian regime hasL silended and suppressed as most articulate and committed opponents. Their release and rehabilitetion must be an essential part of any Igeculine transition to majorrule." " - r
Page 8 AntApartheid News December 1976 Even if t istrue that Matirzima is meref an agent of South frica, his nominal "Indeendence" enäbles the South African Govern ctent to dislain rsposibility fr wftat-eer happens in his rngdom Mat~n i I an amfitnus, er-n, a rsasernyie onf flij fley themn in the petty1peesecation of the people of the Transkei itseff " " The detention of the well knowï ator Winston Ntshona and John Kari fotlowing a performance of "Si-we 1ansi sDead", even if it had been adnised by his white South Aficran securny "adisers", was something for shich Vorster disclaimpd responsiblity on the yrounds that it was the act of an "independent" state-and of course he neser interferes in the affairs of other countries (excluding Namibia. Angola and Zimbabwel. Likewise, when Matanzima sealed the Transkei Letotho bordet, dewanding visas from Lesotho citizees whose GSovernment had refused to recaise hIm, Vorster rejeted Lesotho appeals to inter vene on the grounls that the in anrlsiraton i s run ny wnIses apeals should be redireted to itself. Åt present thére arg in all key position, that the arm ii Umlataý, which was reponsible estifnated to be about 13 to 1.5 run by aeconded white re,1lar for itu own c ffais, willion of the. B39t add the .arm oöfficer, that itu fisarce are He will likewise dis~laim respon remaining Bantustans and one can 75 per teol deied from the South tibility for whntesr eise is done in see how, if this ridiculous process Afrifan tarer. thenaenoftheTtanskeiNeis 1sall'wedtocontinune,theSouth. The feet eans that the officiul this of ineportane in relation , nly Afriar regimeé will ultitafey arlafSouthA ihas,,Obeen toci"ildisturhce iv the Trskei. acknowledge responsibilityonly for reducedfb f era esivl-tse SthAfricawillnoIogerbe itswitesandrfu- even te inforw that of Deomac[k, 1that the official obliged to publish stalet-s the worldof thprogress
Apartheid regime plans new pioy in Namibi' FACED with considerable. leaders ere responsible for mana- In the face of clear sit Westernpressuretoincrease gngevents. of growing national unit the credibility of the Turnhalle But the proposal comes at a time resistance, South Africa talks in Namibia, Soth Africa of mouting internaf chaos in Turn- little but make gestures 1 is again toying With the idea of ha(e. Some of thedegagees are national opnion and int referendlumin the country. beginning9to getout of hand, represniqnat home. Shortly thopgnlaccusingouthAfricaof One edeile Shortly fter the Western powers tryingtoimpose'otustanson , redtoooutsp in hadagainlet SouthAfricaoffthe Namible Certardeggatioshye tri sior tat hookin theSecurityCouncil, matdetoken witj drwals . deportation td SouthA apartheid hatchet-manAHdu Norweremattergjelpd e Therimeo coent Plessis,chiefWhiteNationalist whtedlegateEb vanZijItod sur b ofthe Partydelegatetothetalks, th ie delegatinthatvan h scupiy in'ce efteu announced thug the eth nic delega- ArchabouttheDmara sdelggcgthoiif 000 a Wes tionsweregivingseriousthought frchfo ghthe a aoaU ndWe toaNewYearreferendumto d r e . - a a obtain a mandate for Turnhalle. Voting, however mould not he - K issi nge onanationalbasis,andpeople T w o would not be asked to give their ,P support to Turnhalle as a whole- ex posed the referendum would be conducted separately in each ethnic unit,and again AndhetoldtheGene whatwouldremergewouldbea RE toniate wth aPi b ny"esshbee mandate for each ethnic delegation refused to negotiate with SWAPO bly: "Progress has been to continue its efforts at Torehulle. as the authentic representative of achieving all these goals.' Nor would people have necess- theNamibianpeopleand to give But accordingto aSW to vote: Whites would any undertaking that South Africa memoire, ata meeting arilyeventoeoe htswud mlithdrawfro9 amba SWAPOdelegation twod vote,ofcourse,sincethatwas wilesphtrotNatia. earlier,Kesaitwa their traditional mode of demo- Pn a speech to the NationalVist earlier, Kissinger said tha cratic expression, but they did Party at the end of October, he Vorster regime remained not intend to impose this on other said that South Africa would not gent on UN demands for groups and local chiefs and ethnic he dictated to by the UN, who tion to national indepen leaded; would be leftto determine wanted him to meet SWAPO's Namibia. themeansoftestingopinionmost PresidentSamNujoma .TheSWAPOdocumer appropriate to tei oaditional In the UN General Assembly on "It would be misleading, ways September 30, US Secretaryof and dangerous forus to I These are hoary old tactics for State Kissinger said that US policy (in the name of 'delicate the-South African regime in , on Namibia had three objectives: matic entiatives') to give Namibia. In the late forties, when The independence of Namnibia impression or act as if th world attentionfirst began to withina fixed, short time madeprogress on Namib focus critically on the South limit. cannot and a/il not acqe African administration of the The calling of a constitutional this game. territory, South Atrica organsed a conference at a neutral venue "SWAPO's view is the referendumwhichyieldeda undertheaegisoftheUN, noconsensusatthisstag massive vote in favour of continuing * The participation in that con- the three principals in th South Africanrule. ferenceofallauthentic the United Nations, SWA Early Namibian petitioners to national forces, including South Africa. The stun theUN,includingRevdMichael specificallySWAPO. blockasalwaysisSOuth Scott testified to the deliberate mystification und coercion of the people by South Africa's Ni RTZ miners strike agaii "Commissioners and closer examination of the fiqures proved sub-human conditions the referendums fraudulence: out ofatotalpopulationofaround OVER700workersattheRio Wedgwood Benn,ml 300,000, nearly280,000 were said Tinto Zinc Corporation's mine at ped that th tohanevoted. RossinginNarnibia have -goneoc promisedthatter co [. eIeretn years eleclo'ns to the srei ateaPa ngwould be terminated Southricn yea d el anto the strike ie protest at theappalling the Labour Parv m South African-cva Bantustans conditions there. haveagainproui the Namibian Eyewitnesssourcessaythat opposition. people-r.rPather-taiethnic althoughRTZexecutivesin thatitwouldbeuna groups amo ns them it the London haveclaimed thatthe startdelveringNam opportn I viesto exercisetheir mine wasto be a model in terms of uraniuv in 1976 as r 'demon ic rit to determine their workers' living conditions, in fact pol afutore. After 97.7 per the single liningquartersaR RTZhasaskedfora ce ofpotentialOvamboland teinitngheeprneateat toheinp are amongthe worston anymine uraniumfr~omba antustatn voters had stayed away in Namibia. ura1-from aro from the polls in 1973, South - Onefthemainpurchasersof S p ehstronlcib Africawasforcedtointervene, u ni omRosinsrBres teSWAPOhasstronglyc and in a re-run of the election, in Nucdear FuBelds L id whosehctract t e mnti. January 1974, South Africanhaslearestppro onhe riti i eta ph ti and army, aided by South sasth aat t poieadatmadd ySuh Lab-u Government, SWAPO Publicityi Scret. African-armed "tribal policemen', Last mouth the Namibia Support aiothei said: "Now is lb managed to encourage 55 per cent Lommithte c l a fob moreaprte for the British Gosrom of the populatioh into the polling to beput en the Government tO reconsider its position. I booths. recognise that under the f persuade it to cancel the British legitimate government of These tactics will surely be used contract NaibratZ tendent o againinany"referendum",with Itpointsoutthat Namibia,ITZstandstoif SouthAfricatryingtodistance claims to its operations in itself from allegations of coercion * The Minister in charge of country." on the grounds that local ethnic energy policyis now Anthony More groups disband to join SWAPO FOUR political groups, together representing almost 10,000 Namibians, have joined the ranks of SWAPO. The four strongest Nama groups -Hoachanas, Withoois. Vaalgras and the O'm ocratic Party of Namabia-decided unanimously in October to aoin SWAPO. outof fruastraia'ri ,rtrhe total fllife of the South Africari-controlled Turnhalle talks to produce any tangible results. Most of the Namas belonging to these four groups live in the souther part of Namibia. Their attitude clearly refute the Vorster regime's well-worn argument that SWAPO is a "tribal" organisation, drawing support /tr froe. the'Ovamllox Call or sppor ders Maria Mambo (lelt and Ruth Neto in London ral Assemmade in NAPO aide ith a days t the intransia transidence of it goes on: cosifusing. be expected diplothe e US has ia. Weesce in t there is e among e conflict: iPO and bling Africa." ist ontract I, When sin nced ble to Ibian ,cheduled in increase id for the rid S6 per andemned ber ry Peter e time nt to t must uture orfeit all our Other groups which have joined SWAPO in recent months include the Rehoboth Volksparty, the main Baster opposition group, while Turnhalle delegates returning from the Caprivi Ptrip rcently were forced to admit that there, too, support for SWAPO was "surpri- MPLA Women's leaders Ruth Neto and Maria Mambo described the role of women in Angola's struggle for liberation andspoke about the' part they are now playing in the building of a new society there, at A meeting in London on November 11, The. meeting was held to mark the first anniversry of Angolan independence, which was declared a year ago in Luanda within earshot of enemy gunfire. Polly Gaster, speaking on behalf of the Angola Solidarity Committee, appealed for material support for Angola and Mozambique for national reconstruction and also to help them fight back against aggression by the white minority regimes in South Africa and Rhodesia. On behalf of the National Assembly of Women, Mary wli s outlined ways in which women in Britain could support their sister in Angola, The meeting was chaired by Terry Marsden, Deputy General Secretary of the Tobacco Workers Union, and orgonised jointly by the Angola Solidarity Committee and the National Ausembly of Women. BBC attacks .Angola in the 'war of the waves" "M.fRXISM, Colonialism, Terror'" ran the heading to the fir st leader in the Times on November 10. It was not obvious whether the three things were being distinguished or conflated, but the main message was soon clear. The subject was Angola its "Marxist" Government, Cuban and Russian "interlopers" and the "terror" being inflicted by MPLA. The Guardian headline was same day was "MPLA and Cubans in Angola Massacre". For a few days the press and television were full of reports of fighting, refugees, atrocities committed by MPLA and SWAPO -babies murders, girls raped. Since the end of the mercenaries' trial the papers have carried virtually, no reportson Angola. The struggle to rebuild the country, shattered by colonial withdrawal, war andineasion, has gone unremarked. Death and destruction are, of course, always more newsworthy, but it is interesting that the iedia shouild usethe first opportruity to blow thisup into front page news, thus giving MPLA's enemies greater credibility For in doing so the press wilfully ignores the fact that the UNITA remnants are in fact small groups armed and trained by the South African defence force, and operating under South African commard. This was revealed at an Angolan press conference on September 8 when a South African soldier captured in Angola described his patrols across the border to collect "refugees", who were then taken to camps In the Caprivi Strip Three Angolans then described their training in such a canp, nder South African officiers, alongside men who had fought with UNITA '4ird r'iA On' Augusht 31 The Guardian reported an ex-South African soldier as saying South African troops somftrimes fought with these units "disguised as guerrillas with black greasepaint". Towards the end of August the Angolan army began to tear out the "forward bases" occupied by these units along the border. Twice since then South African news sources have flashed "'massacre" and "refugees fleeing" stories around the world. SWAPO has confirmed its opposition to UNITA on the grounds of its cpllabotation with the South African defence forces, and suggested that the massacre "-,,allegations have been made to divert attention from atrocities committed by South African troops in northern Namibia. In November the new allegations came from a far from impartial source-the South African Commissioner General for Namibia. In a statementon November 16 Angola's iOi tor-Gencrl of Infr.r mat-on, Luis be Almeia, denounced the "smear campaign" Mounted against the Angolan Government in the Western press. He said that even though the "hot war" was over, "another war has begun ..,. the radio war of the waves".. . . He especially attacked the BBC, saying that I tplayed a big part in the press vilification of his country. "It gives constant protection to everything that i anti People's Republic of Angola using some Anglo- American and Portuguese adventurers who pass themselves off as journalists," He also singled out the French news agency Agence France Presse, which recently syndicated an interview with FNLA leader Holden Roberto which was published by British newspaper.
'UK -funds b ail out. SA econo my capitalist countries at the present time. Th generally depressed state of the eapiwtalist world economy has certainly contributed towards South Africa's difficulties. But far more important have been two factors within the control of the Vorster regime. First, there has been the Govern meat's ambitious capital developwent programme. This is far from being an ordinary development plan-it reflects the apartheid relime's desire to create an economy that can withstand a civil war, that is increasingly self sufficient in essential raw materials-or their substitutes, and that is increasingly central to the economic and strategic interests of the West through its high level of profitability, and its supplies of gold, diamonds, coal and, above all, enriched uranium,. The second factor that has brought on the present economic mriss is the Vorster regime's military expenditure. Defence spending has increased threefold, front R344 million in 1972 73 to 111350 m i i onn 97 6-77." W nth a estiated force of some 50,000 already fully committed in Nameibia, an unknown commitment in Rhodesia, and with South Africa itself in a state of undeclared civil war, there is every reason to expect tat the present military commitments of the South African regime mill grow substantially, South Africa is-therefore today more urgently in heed of foreign capital, and in larger quantities, than ever before. And not only does It need to attract large supplies of capital-it is also able to do so. The flow of foreign capital has grown so considerably in recent years t1rat it now plays a more crucial role in the process of Pilkington strikers Families on a farm owned by a Saier Walker subsidiary in Natal, Most of these children show signs of malnutrition capital formation in South Africa cent in the EEC. into the orbit of the fin than it has done sincethelate Foreign investment is closely economic and strategic 19thcentury. linkedwithtrade,afieldwhere theWesterncountries. I Total toreign investment in Britain is going to have to choose liberation struggle in So South Africa rose from R4562 between the relative importance of . is therefore internation million in 1968 to R10,380 million its markets in independent Africa Thus in the post-Sow at the end of 1973. Of this, some and its traditional commitment to R5616 million, or 54 per cent, was white-ruledSouthAfrica. theflowofforeigncapi directinvestmentandR4764 Inthis context the consumer Africa assumes crucial p millio was nop-direct.The EEC boycott appearsnot just as ass importance.If thisbat countries accounted for 64.5 per indwisdual or collective gesture of won within the next fee cent and North and South America repudiation of apartheid but as danger will be great that for17.1percent. meanstothemobilisingofsufficient countrieswillbedrawn In 1972, the last year for which pressures to forcetheLabour deeplyinto adestructivi the South African Government Government to carry out Labour that sill not only devasi published a breakdown of the PartyPolicies of economic dis- ern Africa but also divid origin of capital inflows, thesterling engagement from South and demoralise the peoples areaaccountedfor55.8percentof SouthernAfrica. Westerncountriesthem all South Africa's foreign liabilities. Foreign investment also promotes the Vietnam War did to Accosdihg to figures published ' the continuing flow of emigration- American nation. in 1975, therearea otal of 630 to South Africa, now running at the This is the challenge British firms operating in South rate of around 20,000 a year from crisis of white dominatit Africa,comparedwith494frdm Britain. SouthernAfricaposesto the US,132fromWest Germany The combinationofthese British people. and85fromFrance. processeshasenabledtheVorster Thisarticlesbasedon Official British sources show regime to develop its formidable that new net British direct invest military tapacity at the level of conference paper prepa ment in South Africawas £74.8 armaments andtheproductionof Anti-Apartheid Moveme million in 1972, £87.4 million in armaments. Foreign investment is nce on "Souther n Aic Brirish7 Trade Union and 1973 and £179.8 million in 1974. therefore partly responsible for the Movement's The paer Figures for 1971 show that the erosion of the arms embargo against return on British direct investment South Africa in countries like from AAM, 89 Charlotte in South Africa was 11 per cent, Britain and the US which claimto London WIP 2DO, competed with7.9percent on complywithit. British investment in the US,-7.5 Thedemandsforamandatory New per centin Australia and 11.7per arms embargo, a freeze on all new "'TH N harrassed by SA Security Police P LKING TON's management in arrest under the pas laws because, South Africa has been recruiting the company still has their pass new employees at its Armourplate books. They are alsobeing Safety Glass subsidiary to replace harassed by the security police andWorlers who have been on strike many have been takenin for since the beginning of August. questioning. The workers are now riskin UN trogramme4 INJ A Programme of Action asistanceeto the South African egainst Apartheid adopted on people to establish a non racial November 8, the UN General societyhave become "one ofthe Assembly condemns Govern- primary concerns of the United ments and economic interests Nations and the international which have enabled the racist community". eeinSouth Africat Ivanapppal to Governments, regienS h A it asks them to terminate all build up its military machine, diplomatic relations with the South It accuses these interests of African regime It especially asks making profits from the exploita them to implement fully the atms tion of African labour in South embargo against South Africa and Africa, and says that they bear to probit their companies from 'a grave responsibility for the supplying any material with sufferings of the South African military applications people d fo r the resultring threat It requests governments to t international peace". terminate all econovnic-collaboraThe General Assembly reaffirs tion with South Africa and to tvat the abolition of racist prohibit economic inerests under nomination WSouth Aft-cand their "dTisdictio from cooperatinl" investment in South Africa, the introduction of economic sanctions and an end to emigration to South Africa are interdependent elements in an overall strategy for reducing and eventually ending Britain's support for apartheid. When the liberation struggle has brighter prospects than at any previous stage, foreign capital is drawing South Africa more firmly with the South African regime or expand their campaigns against withtonpanue reegistered in South banks and transnational corporaAfrica. - tins collaborating with South The Programme maesa a special Africa and to provide astiutance to appeal for action against apartheid the people of South Africa add by trade unions, churches, anti their liberation movements. apartheid moveents and other It also appea4st sports bodies non governental openstions. to take action to cipel tact Sotith Trade Unions ane alked'to give African sports federations from all moral and financial support to International sports organisations Africanunions in South Afica and and competitions,. to intensify the campaign against The General Assembly requests emigration of workers there. the UN Special Committee Against Workers are also called on not to Apartheid to take action to handle any arms orders to South encourage the implementation of Africa and to support fellow - the Programme and to promote workers who, on the grounds of coordinated internatonal cam* conscience refuseto work n such pfiaa, The Pogr.me asks churclt pe e'ofhca ancial, fortunes of The uth Africa lised. ieto situaid reverse tal to South olitical tie is not a years, the t Western even more - racial war ate South, and if the selves, as the which the in in the ae main rdfor the t confer a and the Labour is avai/able .st, Actors vote for TV boycott THE Actors union, Equity, voted to maintain its ban on the sale of television programmes to South Africa, in a referendum of members in October. It also confirmed that perfor mets who went to South Africa should not be covered by Equity contracts and should be asked to sign a declaration saying that they would refuse to perform if they were prevented from doing so before multiracial audiences. But a move to extend the hen on television programme sales to radio, film, cassette and other recorded material was defeated by 1,921 votes to 1,909-a margin of only 12 votes. Equity members also reincted a motion which would have placed a ban on sales of recorded material and extended the conditions under which it allows members to perform in South Africa to Rhodesia. The referendum was held after a resolution was passed by last summer's Equity annual general meeting calling for the extension of the ben on television ses to other material, Performers Against Racism, a group formed within Equity to campaign for a tougher policy of sanctions against South Africa, said that the fight for a ban on the sale of all material and of visits by Equity members to South Africa would continue. The group's Chairman, Louis Mahoney, said that the narrowness of the vote seas itself a victory. He also protested against irregularities in the way the referendum had been conducted. engers' beat SA ban ' "w evncvgu -ievampeo Thistimetheserieshasbeen version of the "Avengers" television made under the simbralla of the series-will be seen on South producer's own company, Avenger African television, as a reslt of a Enterprises. So the actorsqhave manoeuvre by its producer, Brian signed a film, instead of a tereai Clemens, to evade the Equity ban contract and the show does not fall on the sale of television material within the Equityban.toSouthAfrica. Thesametechniquehasbeen The Equity ban applies only to used to sell the cops and robbers programmes made on video tape, series "The Sweeney" to Sduth as all the previous "Avengers" African tafeevision. serieshavebeen. . . . calls for breaking of SA ties their liberation movements. e for an effective arms embargo against South Africa. against all forms of naclear cooperation with South Africa. * against all collaboration by Governments, banks an transnational corporations with South Africa. * against propaganda by the South African regime and its collaborators. for the unconditional release of South African political prisoners. for the boycott of racially selected South African sports kearisi
Anti-Apartheid News December 1976 Page 11 REVIEWS Book Remembered Violence by Ronnie Mutch Published by Hutchinson £3.75. AT A-time when scheolchildrei are being shot dead.in the streets of South Africa, when the whole black nation is being deprived of its citizenship by the Bantustan fraud, it's in extremely bad taste to paublish a novel which trivialises the people's grief and suffering. One would expect that a book about a group of saboteurs would embody some semblance of social analysis, some insight into the wellsprings of revolutionary fervour. Instead, this is the kind of trash the reader has to put up with: "1 had perfected a technique whereby with one hand, a slight inclination. of the head and the grace of God I could drink hot coffee supine. Sometimes if the cup was over-full a minor scalding resulted ... I put the cup down shakily and reached for a cigarette, still with one hand. If ever a white writer tried to steal the black man's thunder, this is it. Louis Greyling, the firstperson protagonist, is a well-paid scientist employed in a uranium laboratory. It pleases him to be drawing a good salary, from a Government he loathes, for doing next to nothing. So nTch so that "if it was up to me I would have paid myself the country's entire annual defence budget. The visions of what I could do with that sort of money were always ,beguilingly enjoyable." The stench of opportunism that riues from the pages of this book is diluted only by the smell of booze and the volume of sweat which Louis Greyling continually informs us is trickling down his armpits. Not only is the apartheid regime going to be toppled by a tiny group of white bombers, but the heroes are going to accompls their mission while they themselves are bombed o.t ofTeir migis.. The following piece of dialogue exemplifies the noyel's tone and Its SOWETO greetings to all friends here and abroad from Paul and Adelaide Joseph and their girls. PEACE NEWS for non violent struggles and making alternatives. Information, analysis, strategies for sociglichange. f2.67 for six isonths subscription. £ for trial six issues, From 8 Elm Avenue, Nottingham. CHALLENGE, monthly paper of the Young Commuist League. Price 8p. Sufbscription £.30for 12 issues. Send to 28 Bedford St, .London WC2. LABOUR's independent monthlyLABOUR LEADER-for Socialism and the Labour Party. Annual -subscription £1.30. Send for a sample'copy from ILP, 49 Top Moor Side, Leeds LSI1 9LW. SANITY, the paper of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament CND), keeps you in touch with the arms race, the threat of war and hopes for peace, £1 a year ffom CND, Eastbourne House, BuolelrdsPlae, London El OPT. level of awareness. The saboteurs are on the run from the police. "I was thinking what our next move would be when the far-side car door was opened. It was Chris, 'Jesus,' he said, 'I'm buggered.' 'I'm drunk,' I said happily. Chris grabbed the bottle and held it up to the moonlight. 'You bastard,' he said, 'you've polilhed off half of it. 'I didn't notice,' I mumbled. Chris took a man size mouthful '.. 'Where shall I drop you?' 'Near my motor-bike, please. I want to get home, if I can. I'ma, pretty drunk.' 1 said, and giggled." Whatever real-life adventures this novel may have been based on, it is evidently abysmal. It makes not the slightest reference toa political programme or to any notion of social reconstruction. It usurps the suffering of the black millions and tends to cloud the reader's consciousness of their revolutionary courage. Perhaps that is why it was accepted for publication. I EniverCarim Pamphlet South Africa: The Crisis in Britain and the Apartheid Economy, by Dorca$ Good and Michael Williams. Foreign Investment and the Reproduction of Racial Capitalism in South Africa, by Martin Legassick and David Hemson. Both pub' lished by the Anti-Apartheid Movement, 50p. A central feature of the AntiApartheid Movement's policy has lieen the cutting of UK investment in South Africa. Both these pam'phlets argue for a displacement of investment from the centre of the stage: Legaisick and Hemson want it placed alongside other actvities, while Goodand Williams barelyX, mention it at all, Theygre not, however, addressing themselves to the Movement ia plea to Change its policy, pt to those who are generally polifcully aware but per haps uninforsed about apartheid. Their contributions can be dis cussed both as pamphlets about apartheid and as critiquepof current AAM policy. In their first aspect, they are both concerned to relate apartheid to the experience of British workers. Their approaches are largely complementarn , Good and Williams devote much of their analysis to showing how apartheid is oppressing Briti workers. Af rical. Nationa F Legassick and Hemnon take the opposition of British workersas a starting point and seek the most effective form if action. Given Good and Williams's argument that apartheid is oppressing British workers, it is not surprising that a large part of their analysis is devoted not to South Africa but to the UK. In addition, a fair part of the pamphlet is taken up with attempts to expound Marxist economic theory. Although difficult for those unfamiliar with the jargon, these are unfortunately vital to the understanding of much of the argument. The concept of exploitation is particularly difficult to handle in this contevt. The role of imperialism and racism in creating areas of unequal exchange other than direct capitalist expropriation of surplus, is not confronted squarely. This failure is of central political importance. The aralyses of tle role of foreign investment in the development of manufacturing in South Africa, the export of South African capital and the development of the UK crisis are efaliy obscure, and in the last case, perverse, It is in their attempt to relate the UK. crisis to apartheid that their argument becomes seriously itis leading. To argua that the present UK crisis and onsecqent export of capital in a classic Marxist criis is absurd. As Rowthorn has shown the rate of surplus value has been falling in the UK< so that the fall in the rate of profit has nothing to do with the rise in the organic composition of capital. It is at least partly the result of political and trade union action by workers. The argument about investment illustrates the difficulties of an appeal to the self interest of British tworkers. Good and Williams point out that investment in the UK is part of an attack on workers', living standards because it daLplaces workers in highly Chorused, high wage sectors so chat they pain through the reserve army ofthe unemployed into lowv wage employ. went. But they go on to argue that the export of UK capital ishrmful to British workers, nof because they would beneft if it were invested here bet because it increases the power of British capital against thm: UII-5IllIEI ;UU , CARDS 25p per pack of 5 plus postage From ANO 49 Rathlone Street, London W1 stopping of UK investment in South Africa would have only a marginal effect or the relative power of British workers. Much of Legassick and Hemuon's pamphlet is devoted to the exposure of the reality which lies behind the various twists and turns -of apartheid's apologists. Both .pamphlets analyse carefully the important role of foreign capital as the dynamic of capitalism in South Africa Not only have the international connections of South African capital provided much of its technical know-how. It has also been the support of investments unlikely to be undertaken by local capital. This it has done both directly, eg by investment in border areas, and indirectly through the financing of state investment. This plays a 'much larger role than in most capitalist economies and is vital to the development of the basic infrastructure of the South African economy. Good and Williams rightly stress the importance of these indirect forms of support and indicate the difficulties in finding out about them. It is with their conclusions f or action that I would take issue. Legassick and Hemson argue that stopping new UK investment in South Africa would do nothing about existing UK assets and that anyway this is unlikely to happen. Good and Williams wish to exploit the links between British and South African capital in order to promote international working class solidarity. They point to cases such as British Steel Corpora tion, Leyland and Consolidated Goldfields where British and South African workers struck against the company largely in ignorgnce of each other's action. They point out earlier that capitalist econo mies are so interlinked that picking out individual firms is unlikely to be meaningful. The coincidence of joint ownership is a very small peg on which to hang international solidarity. The response to such complex interaction must be primarily a- political one. Emmet Grogan SWAPO 1977 POSTER CALENDAR hr Engiih Sp-ni Frenh sed Arabic Deia the tthg tIf tha Nbie P, ple SeA2 23xtlw6ehe ineE5020 D-sn herorderaf10 mu- es To: South West Africa Peoples Organ isit 'n, 21125 Tabernace St, London EC2 I would like to order.,...sWAPO calenders,. I enclose £. Neae and ddress in block letters: Minimum membership fee: £3; students/apprentices E2 Overseas: Surface mail/Europe £3; Airmail E6 Affiliation: national organisations, £10; regional organisations, £5; local organisations, £3 Subscription to AA NEWS: UK and rest of Europe £1,7 Outside Europe, surface mail £1'75: airmail £3.75 AAM, 89 Charlotte ., Loandon WV1IBP2DO.Tl 0.8
FiEE THE DETAINEES! Decemberce10 5.30- 7.30pm South Africa House, TrafaJgar Square, London WC2 Organised by SATIS-.the camnpaign fort the release (I I all Southern African political prisoners. SOM AFRICAN HEROES "AY Meeting and Cultural Evening Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London WC1 December161976 7pm Speakers: ALFRED NZO, General Secretary, African National Congress of South Africa ROMESH CHANDRA, General Sectrefary, World Peace Council KEN GILL, General Secretary, AUEW (TASS) BOB HUGHES MP, Chairman, Anti-Apartheid Movement Mayibuye Cultural Unit The World Peace Council will make a posthumous presentation of the Juliot Curie Gold Medal to Brain Fischei. Details: ANC of South Africa, 49 Rathbone St, London WI Tel 01-580 5303 Teach-in on, Zimbabwe NED-COLONIALISM OR LIBERATION? SundayDecember12 10.30am-6 pm 34-36 Bedford Square, London WCl Speakers will include Bob Sutcliffe, Colin Stoneman, Sholto' Cross, Lionel Cliffe and a representative of the Anti Apartheid Movement. Registration fee: £2; students and unemployed £1 Details: Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation, Gamble St, Nottingham, or Institute of Race Relations, 247 Pentonville Rd, London NI. Tel 01l-837 0061 Southern Africa: Whose Side is Britain on? An examination of the continued support given by the British Government and British industrialists to the white minority rgimes in Southern Africa. Price 20p From Central Books, 37 Grays Inn Road, London WclX BPS. oduction to the Southern Africa Campaign by NUS Gr ear hages ba a taken place in Africa and Asia in th last few years-as mere and more countries have thrown off the shackles or in-perik lun in their drive for national liberation and independence. A question frequentlyasked is: "ihat is the atitude of the Socialist countries, in particular of the Soviet Union, to these and new developments?" Now is your chance t6find out-by subscribing toa new Englishlanguage journal-AFRICA AND ASIA TODAY. An illustrated bi-monthly, this journal looks at political, economic and cultural life in African and Asian countries. It costs £1.50 for one year (6 issues) and £2.25 for two years (12 issues). Send this form with youremittance to Central Books Ltd 37 Grays Inn Road, London WCIX BPS Ptease supply AFRICA AND ASIA TODAY for I year/2 yrs to: Name ...... Address ...... I enclose £...... DIARYb F PALESTINE1977 Full ofinformation about Palestine and the Palestinians -maps, documents,photographs, I statistics, useful addresses. Order your copy now-and why not buya copyfor a friend? £1 UK - add 25p for post and packing. Overseas add 50p; $3 inclusive. By post only from: Palestine Action, 101 103 Gower St, London WC1. Give a subscription to ANTJI-APARTHEID NEWS for Christmas Suhsaiption: UK and rae of Europe £2.00; outside Europa surface mail £2.00, airmail £4.00 From Anti-Apartheid Movement 89 Charlotte St London Wit THE Ant-Apartheid Movement is seeking an AdministratireSecretary. Applticants should have seeretarial and office experience and be prepared to work long hours for low pay. Job description anid further details from Executive Secretary. AAM 89 Charlotte St London W1, tel 01-580 5311. Spotlight on. .. SOWETO Pamphtet published by the World Peace Council and the African National Congress. Available from: ANC, 49 Rathbone St,. London W1. Price 10p.9 I4Hth StLonnNW3I Photograpic daerandj