(LN eee 1 iy. By TOM MORRIS MSss* Canadians have a working &¥& knowledge of South Africa’s Apartheid. Most abhor it. 1968 is Human Rights Year, declared by the United Nations. This alone gives cause to reflect about South Africa. it is also the 56th anniversary of the founding of the African National Congress in 1912 at Bloemfontein. Pro- fessionals, intelléctuals and a large number of chiefs and tribesmen, work- €rs and peasants, met in unity in pur- Suit of freedom for South Africa. The A.N.C, is not only the oldest liberation organization, but the only one with a mass base, dedicated leadership and today has built up a highly-trained people’s army. The long experience of the A.N.C. has shown that events to- day have forced armed Struggle upon the South African people. Contrary to claims that the armed units of the ANC. are “terrorists”, (how often the colonists have termed armed resistance terrorism!), the history of Struggle of the South African patriots shows that every possible method has been tried to bring justice and equality to bear. These efforts increasingly have been met with brutal suppression by the white minority who rule the country. In 1910 Britain granted “indepen- dence” to the white minority and the FEBRUARY 16, 1968—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 6 Union of South Africa was born. This Union excluded Africans and other non- whites from government,and, in 1913, the Land Act was passed robbing the Africans by dividing the land so that 87 percent of all land became the property of the white minority. A Poll Tax was also introduced in this period, Its purpose was to force a. population, whose: mode of life was a commodity one, to pay taxes in the form of money, thereby creating a migrant labor force which could be used as the needs of South African capitalism demanded. This legal bit of thievery forced the mass of the African population into white-owned mining and industry—a poorly paid work force which remains to this day the backbone of South Africa’s economy. The year 1913 also saw the begin- nings of A.N.C.-inspired anti-pass law actions. The discriminatory pass laws, long a badge of slavery, were being extended to include women. Violent op- position defeated this - move by the government and the extention attempts failed. At that time Britain still held powers to disallow discriminatory ac- tions passed by South Africa’s parlia- “ment. Delegations visited London on several occassions to press Britain to use her constitutional powers against discrimination, all without success. During the Twenties, trade union activity was stepped up as South Africa underwent rapid industrialization. The A.N.C. was right there, supporting workers’ strikes and denouncing the brutal repressive measures used by the white minority against the people. _ The mid-Thirties saw the rise of fas- cism in Europe and the support of the South African white ruling circles for the nazi ideas of racial superiority. During this period, legal intrigues in. parliament took away the vote of the Cape Africans. The disenfranchisement of the colored people quickly followed in 1962. These days sounded the death .Knoll on the: promises of the white minority for constitutional guarantees. It also ended the possibility of the mass of the South African population to advance their demands via the par- liamentary path. The battle lines were tightening. The period of the Second World War and after brought the rise of the na- tional liberation struggles across the world. Corrupt old empires died, some quietly, other were buried screaming. These events inspired the South Afri- can people even further with the hopes and determination of all oppressed mankind. . The return to power of the Nationa- list party with: the its openly-proclaim- ed aims of Apartheid marked a turning point, in the oppression of the people. ‘A fi These racists, who openly supported the nazis during the Second World War, whipped up the white population with the cry of “Swart Gevaar” (Black Danger) and, once firmly in power, quickly eliminated all vestiges of equality that may have survived in the land. The Program of Action of the A.N.C. in 1949 defined the principle and con- tent of struggle to be mass: action. This included boycotts, strikes, passive resistence—many forms, flexibly used as time dictated. In 1950 two massive one-day political strikes rocked the country in honour of those killed in long struggle for liberty. In 1951 the A.N.C., jointly with the South African Indian Congress, launched the famous Defiance Campaign against the Apar- theid laws. Some 8,000 A.N.C. members openly defied the laws and were jailed. The white regime provoked riots which were used as a pretext to arrest seve- ral A.N.C. leaders. Stay-at-home strikes greeted the “Suppression of Communism Act” that year. This Act became vitally important in the government’s ability to terrorize the people. Its wording was broad enough to enable the police to pin the label on any African for actions felt by the White regime to endanger it. The Act stands today. Speeches and documents of the government are libe- rally spiced with the “communist men- ace” bogey. Countless patriots have been rounded up, convicted and jailed under its provisions. The years that followed were of con- tinuing mass action. These took place both in the countryside and the cities. In places like Zeerust, Sekhukhuniland and Mabieskraal the A.N.C.-led cam- paigns against the pass laws, Bantu Education laws and Bantu authorities became so widespread that in 1959 the A.N.C. was banned in rural areas. A year later the A.N.C. became illegal throughout the country. The arrests began in 1950 and by 1956 a total of 156 leaders of the A.N.C. and other people’s organizations: were charged with High Treason. Hun- dreds of other local leaders have also been arrested, banished, restricted or victimized in other ways. The best sons of the people like Nelson Mandela, Govan Mbeki, Elias Motsoaledi, Ahmed Kathrada and Bram Fischer are serving long prison terms including life im- prisonment. Patriots such as Vuyisile Mini, Zinakile Mkhaba, Washington Bongco and others have died on the gallows, Violence more and more became the criterion. People’s demonstrations were marked for police butality. The Sharpe- ville massacre in 1960 was but a sign of the times. There were many Sharpe- villes in those years and the pattern of reaction was more violence to come. It became clearer that the A.N.C. could no longer advise the people to remain non-violent in the face of violence. The time had come for reappraisal, to take up arms in the defense of hard-won gains, and for the overcoming of the white tyranny. . Umkhonto We Sizwe (The Spear of the Nation) units, the military wing of the African National Congress, directed their first attacks on South African gov- ernment and military installations in December, 1961. - The banning of the A.N.C. marked the end to the non-violent phase of Struggle. The following situation has arisen: 3 @ South Africa is now ruled with’ the gun. It has become the strongest military power on the continent. | e Defying numerous United Nations resolutions against Apartheid, the gZOv- ernment instead stepped up racism. . 4