On May 17th. this year, the South African Minister of Police, Mr. S.L. Muller made a remarkable statement about the extent of guerrilla activity in Southern Africa. Speaking at a meeting in Johannesburg, he told his audience that a very large number of his men were at that time engaged on South Africa's nothern borders in what he called 'near warfare conditions.' This, he admitted, made grave and worrying demands on South Africa's 40,000 strong police force, which, in any case had to deal with the highest crime rate in the world. It is this police force, along with South Africa's Army, Navy and Airforce, that the new Conservative administaration in Britain is about to rearm.
Conservative policy on Southern Africa is very clearly defined. First South Africa. Douglas-Home has committed the Tories• to renewing arms sales to the Vorster regime for so-called external defence. More than that, he has said that in power, the Conservatives would take steps to make special military arrangements for cooperation between South Africa and NATO. Anthony Barber, the Tory Party Chairman, said on a recent visit to South Africa that under the Conservatives, Britain would treat South Africa as an ally. What that means is that, although Britain will recognise that South Africa is illegally occupying Namibia (S.W. Africa) she will do nothing to help ending that occupation. There will be an attempt at a compromise with Smith in Rhodesia, and as the Conservaties confidential document puts it there will be a 'friendly re-examination with Portugal of ways and means of utilising the Anglo-Portuguese alliance to establish mutually valid defence arrange ments in the Southern Atlantic."
It's quite clear that, if nothing else, all this will give a strong moral boost to the white racialist regimes of Southern Africa: in fact, it means much more than that. For the liberation movements it represents a significant shift in the strategic arms balance: for countries like Tanzania and Zambia which have been directly involved in supporting the guerrilla movements, it is a very real threat.
Labour add their bit Not that this is a complete reversal of Labour's policy in government. Over the Africa 16 Buccaneer jet fighter/bombers, a number of HS-125 twin jet aircraft, £400,000 of motor chassis for armoured cars and lorries, spare parts for Buccaneers, Canberra bombers, Shakletons, ammunition for South Africa's Centurion tanks and 4.5 inch shells for British-made frigates. And South Africa is now manufacturing under licence from Rolls Royce and Hawker Siddley, jet engines for the Impala aircraft and for the Italian Aer, Macchi MB 326 strike trainer.
But, despite the fact that Labour's 'arms embårgo' was anything but watertight, the South Africans have scarcely been able to conceal their delight at being able, once again, to buy British weapons Over the past five years, the bulk of South Africa's defence equipment has been supplied by France, but it's known that Vorster has been very worried that France might at any moment enforce a full scale embargo, as De Gualle did previously on Israel, thus leaving South Africa with a completely inadequate defence system. So. Britain is going to be sked to supply some £300 million of equipment over the next year. South Africa Siddley to supply the aerial reconnaisNimrod plane. Packed WITn sophisticated electronic equipment, this is ideal for locating enemy submarines, or guerrilla b roop concentrations. She also wants more Buccaneers. Speaking in Salisbury, Rhodes the South African Defence forces' chief recently said of the Buccaneer It is an excellent plane for counter-insurgency operations." The Buccaneer is supposedly a naval aircraft for external defence only. The South African Defence Ministry is also very interested in the Jaguar supersonic strike niane This is an Anglo-French broiect. invited the South African airforce to testfly the plane. The British ship-building industry is confidently awaiting orders of £200 million for frigates and destroyers from South Africa-equipment that South Africa wants on grounds of 'fleet standardisation'-many of the ships in the S.A. navy have British specifications, SO that supplementary equipment from Britain is cheaper, and much easier to obtain. Finally, South Africa will be wanting a number of British helicopters.
'External' defense All these will be justified as "arms for external defence. In the same way, France justified her breaking the UN.
bought from France, eleven have ended anti-guerrilla operations in Rhodesia, together with 'Super-Frelon' helicopters. They are all on loan to Rhodesians in support of the operations carried out by 4,000 South African army police ground troops. And according to French newspaper reports, the South Africans are also experimenting with a French helicopter against the Zimbabwe comrades. British weapons, too, have been used against SWAPO comrades in Namibia—as far back as two. years, ago the "Daily Express' carried reports of a British helicopter being shot down in 'anti-insurgent operations' there.
In addition to this, British firms have been investing freely in South Africa's domestic armament industry (small arms, ammunition, chemical and biological weapons) ever since it was set up in the arly 60's. In particular, the munitions manuZobruary 1970 OVERSEAS ISSUES PACING TITS NICE CONLEVARIVS COVINCIN DEVENCE OUTSIDE NATO Propared for tho 1970 Conferunoo by an ad Working Group undor the Choizmanship of Sir Frederio Bonnett, MP r other Spoojalists (Beo APPENDIX :
INTRODUCTION On the day that a Conservative Doronce Kinistor takes offlou, there c111 be at the absolute operational minaum; South Zaat Asin, whore, spart froa tho Bong tong garrison, it 1a likely that any snall romaining toroe w111 ba both inodoquato cad Above al1 the Group bolderes + urgontly initiated and no Only in thio way question, and only HE GULZ Who Probion: rosence aft The Se ergo, come 0 102 me loida, w tability a arlod and inv sultant polita -aforeod would fu prance to the South The danger is thu in tho Cult. The nood 1 otatos but of lesaening t incronsing the ohances facturing firm, African Explosives and Chemicals, part of which was recently taken over by the South African Government, began as a joint venture in which ICI held 42% of the shares. Now it makes anti-personnel bombs and the riot gas and bullets which in February wounded five African children in a riot in Daveytown African township, near Cape Town.
Overall, the new arms supplies from Britain will make an important contribution to South Africa's defence capabilities. In 1968 and 1969, the South African military forces held two large scale military exercises. In both, light bombers were used, (Buccaneers and Canberras), together with French helicopters. This is exactly the type of equipment Britain will sell. Neither of exercises was 'anti-submarine'-(this is what the Tories claim the equipment will be used for-both were miles from the coast, and as the chief of the armed forces said at the time 'the aim is to give our troops anti-terrorist training.
hat is more as military co-operatio etween South Africa and Portugal grow it would not be surprising to see these British aircraft being used against liberation fighters in Angola and Mosambique, adding to the British weapons used there by the Portuguese who receive them under NATO defence agreements. (The South Africans have sent at least three battalions of troops of the TETE province of Mosambique) The same is true, of course, of S.W. Africa Already, South African aircraft have been seen flying high reconnaisance missions over Zambia (another possible use for NIMROD???). And van Merwe, Chairman of S.A.'s National Party's Foreign Affairs Committee, has suggested pre-emtive strikes on Israeli lines against Zambia and Tanzania Zor privato sireulatdont not tor aubtiontier Conservativo Consonmonith & Ovoraudo Counti ZOE CIRCUUATION Rot: COCC 274 fa and a3028ter Aotion on the Lines reconmended below may serve to avert hictordo tragedlos watch Ion the lindater takes must bo sosty to do so bo put bayoni • an irrecovarablo 1053 by and trat with Adon cha hroat to order in tho 36 Horo subđo, the 11cm thue roDUDEnTAL MOVIE rity.
Titloal organsona Ittoral ot cad thay Kaunda is well aware of the danger, and has just ordered a £7 million missile system from Yugoslavia-but nevertheless, Zambia remains highly vulnerable. Tanzania remains even more exposed from the sea, where S. African owned British built frigates could easily shell Dar-es-Salam as part of a "small-scale police action. And just this possibilitywith the Conservative government remaining strictly 'neutral'—is being taken seriously in South African press and political circles Those who stand to gain Who stands to gain most in Britain from these deals? According to the Times Business news' it will be Hawker Siddleywith an estimated E100 million in contracts for Buccaneer, NIMROD and SEACAT missiles. One of 11 directors of Hawker Siddley is Sir Halford Walter Lup ton Reddish, President of Rugby Conservatives, and director of the Economic League which gave some £100,000 to the Tory party to fight the last election. Br firms with S.A. subsidiaries altogether gave the Tories £300,000 to fight the General Election. Another director is the Rt. Hon Lord Shawcross of Friston, who is also a director of Morgan and Cie (South Africa), the "Times', Thames Television (remember the recent roW in Thames boardroom over whether or not to show a documentary fiercely condemning Apartheid?), and Birmingham Small Arms Co., (which gave £4,000 worth gifts to political organisations last year). And one man who's going to be very much involved in formulating British policy in Africa is Lord Carrington-the new Minsiter of De. fence. Until very recently he was director of Barclay's Bank (thought to be not without some interests in S. Africa and Hambros Bank, which has large holdings in Hawker Siddley.
In opposition, the chief Tory advisory body on defence and foreign policy was the Conservative Commonwealth and Overseas Council. At a major meeting in February the Council driew up a long confidential document 'OVERSEAS ISSUES FACING THE NEXT CONSER VATIVE GOVERNMENT. Chairing the whole Council was Sir Frederic Bennett M.P.-a member of the Rhodesian bar and director of Kleinwort Benson Europe (South Africa). (Reginald Maulding is a director of Kleinwort Benson). Specialising on Southern Africa was Mr. Ian Lloyd MP, who was a member of the South African Board of Trade and Industries until 1955, and who contributes regular articles the SA Journals of Economics and Industrial Economics. The whole argument of the document is that with the Suez Canal effectively in Russian hands, Britain must guard the Cape sea route And so.....
The fact is, of course, that the Soviet threat and the Simonstown agreement are just Red Herrings in the Indian (??) Ocean. The only threat to Capitalist investment in Southern Africa as well as to the great economic potential there- -large quantities of Iron ore and oil have been found in Angola, and large amounts of Uranium to the north comes from within the countries. The Conservative Commonwealth and Overseas Council show in their document that they know this. That is why they are proposing to re-arm S.Africa, and to revamp defence treaties with Portugal For they know that in order to survive they must keep open every source of raw materials, every potential market, and every possible region in the world for surplus investment.
The internal repression in South Africa-apartheid; the relations of production there-capitalism; and its essential international support—imperialism, together form a trinity of reaction. his in turn supports and supplies the ruling classes in Britain and Europe. The Conservatives will do everything they can to help break the liberation forces that threaten them when they threaten the regime in South Africa. We in Britain must confront the Conservative's imperialist policies, oppose and smash them. Only a rigorous hostility to capitalism itself can drive and inform this struggle which is the shortest
Black Dwarf July 7.1970 page 12'
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embargo over the past five years. But of the South African airforce's 36 Mirage jets
Rhodesian troops and an estimated 5,000 and para-military
lonst throe aroas whero his inmediato'attention and dootsion will be roguisa, eat la ta tat tat The Gull, where the Bestle Zoroos tag wold to coma so
Looking in oredibility, and the South Atlantio and Indian Dosan watera batoh comprico the Cape Route the COC Working Group reaponedble for thia Paper fool way woll otherio bo Snovitablo.