the Sharpville massacre twenty-five years before.
Earlier in the year, 18 pee police interner police in the squatter blacks is the government's of maintaining In less than seven months since the new constitution came into force, (hailed bi South Atrica's imforward!) more than people have been killed by the polic Some 600 vere killed in Soweto anc other townships in 1976.
Guardian stated: "There is nothing Virule unprecedented about Langa except for the macabre coincidence that twenty-frplace took the anniversary Sharpville. have happened at any time Why has black South Africa exploded in a wave of unrest and protest? UnColony utte movement endemic, réached boiling point because of the worsening increased rising cost of living.
The budget, which included an increase in the general sales tax and which followed sharp increases in the price of petrol, airline tarrifs, and costs has conrising prices generally without a commensurate increase workers' incomes. As inemployent relief their black workers HARDLY a day passes now without reports of increased repression in South Africa as the government confronts the growing anger and militancy of the oppressed. The killing of 19 people at Uitenhage the liberation organisations maintain that the true figure is nearer 40 — only attracted universal attention because it took place on the anniversary of and unbearable hardship.
By Charlie van All outdoor meetings, sport gatherings allu bona gathering; already panned. Now the banning has been extended to all indoor meetings dealing with boycotts of schools and universities. In the SoHevere Ciskei homeland a numE number of South Africa Allied Workers Union have been arrested. The Ciskei is a commuter area for the industrial complex of the Eastern Cape which includes Uitenhage.
The government will not accept that the risings in une lowiisies the spontaneous outburst of a people who have taken ai can take, desparately looking fol scapegoats antong leadership of the liberation movements. Neither the UDF nor the NF are strucEue avec colo Lo the kind of militancy now They are loose malcol. alliances of varied organisations united only by their opposition to apartheid.
Despite the arrests, the violence in the townships have not township cils, who the people regard collaborators, creasingly coming under attack A feature of the current unrest is that it is not confined to the townships and squatter camos near the ,great metropolitan occurring in little known townships the areas.
There can be no doubt that South Africa is approaching something like a pre-revolutionary situation. Quite certainly the onger prepared to quiet! accept the rule of their op pressors. The ruling class is no longer confident that it can go on ruling in the old way.
That is why it has attempted to adapt to the situation with 'reforms' only to find that these do not work because the oppressed unwilling to be fobbed off by these half-baked measures. so tne regime has to fall back on brute force despite the fact that this can only bring dismay to its imperialist allies, the United States and Western Europe, who fear for the safety of their in vestments.
But while the underlyblack people economic there are alsc significant political factors at work. • A feature of the revolts have been the attacks on the collaborationist black councillors in the townships.
The imposition of undemocratic community authorities is a cause of deep alle significant pointer to the growing awalc ness of the masses. To this must be added the perention of the hated pass laws and the fieht equal education opportunities for Black scholars students and the abolition of corporal punishment in the schools.
Faced with this massive wave of black revolt, the apartheid knows only answer inCreasceedression. Ever before the Langa shootings, atter the suc cessful campaign to boycott the elections to the new constitution, 16 opponents of the government of the Uniter Democratic Front (UDF) fron the black unions and the National Forum (NF) rested and face charges of high treason for which the maximum penalty is death.
In the wake of the Vitenhage massacre, there has been a wave of arrests Two hundred and thirty nine people, demonstrating against shootings, were arrested in Cape Town when they marched on parliament. Among •them were the church leaders Allan Boesak and Beyers Naude.
All public meetings at home Cape and the vaa triangle Eastern which includes Sharpville and Soweto has been months. All meetings of 29 anti-apartheid tions in these districts, inthose held UDF, AZAPO (Azania Peoples Organisation) are prohibited.
All this will be of no aval. In souln Alrica lo day the government is confronted not only by the traditional nationalist iberation movement but by the growing strength of the working class organisunions closely integrated with the Coller These the forces which will bring down the apartheid regime capitalist system with which it is bound up.
Socialist Action 5 April 1985