Columbia College Chicago Digital Commons @ Columbia College Chicago End Conscription Campaign Orlando Redekopp Collection October 2017 Conscripts Need Alternatives: Support Ivan Toms End Conscription Campaign Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.colum.edu/ecc Part of the African History Commons, and the Military History Commons Recommended Citation End Conscription Campaign, "Conscripts Need Alternatives: Support Ivan Toms" (2017). End Conscription Campaign. 7. http://digitalcommons.colum.edu/ecc/7 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Orlando Redekopp Collection at Digital Commons @ Columbia College Chicago. It has been accepted for inclusion in End Conscription Campaign by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Columbia College Chicago. CONSCRIPTS NEED ALTERNATIVES • • I I I I j j j l ' II n many respects Ivan Toms is like any other ordinary white South because there was no food or work there, were being attacked daily IAfrican. Born in Germiston, raised in Durban -where he captained by these officials. Old women and babies were being left in the rain his rugby team and was deputy headboy in an illustrious school and cold of a Cape winter because, to the South African government, career - Ivan eventua lly graduated as a medical doctor from the they should not have been in Cape Town . When the women held University of Cape Town in 1976. onto the flimsy branches that formed the base of their plastic From there it was into the army where he was comm issioned to the shelters, this constituted a 'riot' . Rubber bullets, teargas, sneeze rank of lieutenant. And like many of our young men in uniform, Ivan powder and police dogs battered the people into submission and we entered the SADF reluctantly. had to treat the casualties in the clinic." It was not the sweat and drudgery of mili tary life that concerned him. In June 1986 Crossroads was destroyed by "witdoek" conservative II was rather a deep rooted sense that it was wrong to serve in the vigilantes with backup from the security forces. On 16 June the SADF. His reli gious, moral and pol itical convictions told him that the SAOF took over the clinic where Ivan worked: "Now what had been a SADF was being used to defend apartheid. But the alternatives of commun ity clinic run by a Chri stian staff team was used by the SADF leaving the country, living as a fugitive, or even facing the prospect to try and win the "hearts and minds" of the people. I don't blame the of going to jai l were too harsh to consider. National Servicemen who were forced to be part of this occupation of Now, after nine years of experiencing the harsh South African reality, the cl inic. Some of the doctors had actual ly worked in the clinic in Ivan calm ly faces the possibility of up to thirty lonely months in their final year at UCT and were very unhappy about what they had to prison. This is the punishment which confronts him if convicted for do. The blame must bed irected at the SADF. refusing to serve a one month camp in November. "Since October 1984 troops have been used to "I, like many other young white men wh o love their cou ntry, control the black townsh ips of South Africa and to find that I cannot ignore my conscience. I am prepared to go suppress resistance to apartheid. The border is to jail for this stand ," says Ivan. no longer thousands of miles away in Namibia, "The reality of the injustices in our country have convinced but right on our doorstep in Langa, Guguletu, me of the impossibility of continuing with any form of KTC. Friends who might have gone to the service in the SADF. • same church school are now facing each other across the barrel of a gun in the townsh ips. en years have passed since Ivan did his basics in the Med ical For most conscripts this is the first lime they TCorps. Here he tells of some of the experiences he has had have entered a black lownship, and they drive which have led him to the point of refusing to serve and possibly to in high up in a buffel with teargas, grenades, go jail: rifles - and with fear welling up within them. "I have served in the SADF as an officer, and these experiences have greatly influenced my decision to object. "After working in the townships and developing real "t was sent twice to the operational area and served on the Angolan friendships with the people, border for six months. My contact with the Namibian people I can not believe that the convinced me that they do not want the SADF in their country; children and youth being international law says that South Africa has no right to bethere. The chased by patrolli ng buffels !,:,cal people feel that they are oppressed by an invading army For are the ene my. them, curfews and security force harassment are the way of lile in the "I really do believe that I SAOF-imposed war zone. have bee n doing true "I have worked as a do ctor for six years in Crossroads, and national service in my work know that I am able to do real national service working with in the poorest squatter areas the poor and disenfranch ised. of greate r Cape Town . This is the ki nd of service that I "In September 1983, Adm inistrati on Board officials and police would believe will help to build a come in, day in and day out, for three weeks, to demolish 'illegal South Africa that we can all be structures'. What this actually meant was that innocent people who prou d of. " had come from the homelands of Trans kei and Ciskei van's voice echoes the concern of many other Iconscripts . Some have pu blicly been prepared to declare their opposition to serving in theSAD F. For others -no less sincere in their beliefs - it is fam ilies and friends who bear their frustrations. Conscripts are not the only victims of the law. An enti re community has been caught up in a web or war and conscription in South Africa. ·1 am one of many unhappy and unwilling conscripts who have to make very difficult choices: says Ivan. "While some refuse to serve, many simply find it impossible to do anything but go into the SADF reluctantly, angry that they are not given any realistic alternatives. ·1stand with all conscripts who support the End Conscription Campaign's call for constructive alternative national service . "The law provides for community service only to conscripts who ou can support Ivan and other conscripts by are both religious and pacifist. They are forced to do six years or sending the fol lowing message to: service in a government structure. Y "Constructive alternative service shou ld be the same length as military service and be available to us in church, welfare and community oganisations. The Minister of Defence "To those conscripts who see no option but to go unwillingly into the SADF, the choice should be given not to serve in the townships Box 47 or Nam ibia. Cape Town ·1hope that my stand will contribute to the pressure 8000 on the government to introduce constructive alte rnative national service for all consc ripts . "I be lieve I must make a stand. "I am committed to South Africa and believe "I call on your government to change the law that the truly patriotic action fo r me is to go to so that conscripts are given the option of priso n rather than deny my faith and my doing constructive alternative National beliefs. ·south Africa is in a state of civil war and we Service. This service should be the same have to take sides . I believe that the side of length as military service and be available in ju stice and truth is the side of the poor and church, welfare and community disenfran chised in our country. I stand on that organisations. I also call for soldiers to be side .' given the choice of not having to serve in the townships or Namibia." • n baie opsigte is Ivan Toms 'n doodgewone blanke Suid-Afrikaanse man die reen en koue van ·n Kaapse winter btootgestel omdat hufle nie - Isoos enige ander. Hy is in Germiston gebore en het in Durban groot volgens die Suid-Afrikaanse regering - in Kaapstad moes wees nie Toe geword. Op skool he! hy goed gepresteer, was kaptein van sy rugbyspan, vrouens aan die dun lakke, wat die basis van hul plastiekslrukture gevorm asook onderhoolseun. Oaarna het hy by die Universiteit van Kaapstad het, vasgeklou he!, hel die regering dit as 'onlus' beskou. Die gebruik van medies begin studeer. In 1976 het hy as mediese doktor gegradueer. rubberkoeels, traangas, niespoeier en polisiehonde he! hul weerstand Hierna is hy weermag toe, waar hy die rang van tuitenant ontvang het. gebreek en ons moes die ongevafle in die kliniek behandel. Soos dit die geval is by talle van ons jong mans in unilorm. is Ivan "Toe hel die uitersle onheil gekom. Die regering het die hebsug van onwillig die SAW in. Oil was nie die swoeg en sweet wat horn gepla het Kruispad se konserwatiewe teiers gebruik om die huise van 70 000 nie. maar eerder sy oortuiging dat dit verkeerd was om in die SAW te dien. plakkers in Nyanga Extension, Portland Cement en KTC gewelddadiglik Oit was vir horn duidetik dat die SAW gebruik word om apartheid le aan le val en al te brand.