On 19 October, the same day as the government banned Black Consciousness organisations and detained prominent Black people, (see under ORGANISATIONS BANNED and PREVENTIVE DETENTION) it acted against a number of persistent white opponents by restricting them under banning orders.
Those banned, all apparently for five years, were:
- Donald WOODS, editor of the East London Daily Dispatch, who has been an outspoken critic of the Nationalist government. Amongst other things, Woods had repeatedly questioned the official version of Steve Biko's death in detention (see under BIKO DIES).
- Rev. BEYERS NAUDE, director of the Christian Institute (see under ORGANISATIONS BANNED), a former minister in the Dutch Reformed Church and a long-standing opponent of apartheid. Under Naude the Christian Institute refused to give evidence before the Schlebusch Commission and Naude and a number of others were prosecuted in court (see FOCUS 9 p.14). The Christian Institute had also published reports on the use of political detention and police torture. (see FOCUS 10 p.1)
- Rev. Theo KOTZE, Cape regional director of the Christian Institute.
- Mr. Brian BROWN, Christian Institute administrator.
- Mr. Cedric MAYSON, editor of the Christian Institute's monthly magazine Pro Veritate.
- Mr. Peter RANDALL, director of the publishing firm Ravan Press, associated with the Christian Institute, and former director of SPRO-CAS, the study project on apartheid.
- Rev. David RUSSELL, Anglican minister in Cape Town who has campaigned against the destruction of family life through migrant labour and the plight of the squatter communities. At the beginning of 1977 Russell helped to compile a report on the role of the riot police in killings and burnings which occurred in Langa township last Christmas and was convicted for refusing to disclose the names of informants (see FOCUS 9 p.13, 12 p.11) (RDM 20.10.77).
In addition it was reported that an official of the Siyazinceda Trust (see under ORGANISATIONS BANNED) had also been served with a banning order. No name was given. (RDM 20.10.77)
