Newspaper coverage of the violent suppression of the popular protests which broke out all over South Africa in August provided few details about individuals picked up and detained without trial. Police were reluctant to provide information and court actions on behalf of the detainees were sometimes the first notification that a detention had taken place.
On 21 August, the day before voting for the Coloured chamber of the new parliament, police detained an estimated thirty-five leaders of groups opposed to the elections, mostly members or affiliates of the United Democratic Front. They included members of the Natal and Transvaal Indian Congress and the Release Mandela Campaign. Not all of them were named (see current list), nor was the legislation used always quoted. However, at least some were held initially under Section 50 of the Criminal Procedure Act which allows 48 hour detention. Some were released later the same day (DD 23.8.84).
On 22 August police detained more activists, many associated with the Azanian People's Organisation and other black consciousness groups. On the same day the first use in the current unrest of Section 28 of the Internal Security Act (for preventive detention) was reported. The person detained was the UDF's national publicity secretary, Terror LEKOTA.
On 25 August the Minister of Law and Order stated that 42 people were being detained under the Internal Security Act, 17 of them under Section 28. The latter had all been served with detention orders due to expire on 28 February 1985 (RDM 27.8.84; see DETENTIONS on pp. 2-3).
The first court case reported in the press was an application on behalf of Aubrey MOKOENA, chairman of the Release Mandela Campaign, seeking permission for him to consult his lawyer 'in sight of, but out of hearing of prison officials'. This order was granted (S 30.8.84; RDM 3.9.84; T 10.9.84).
Meanwhile, on 7 September the Pietermaritzburg Supreme Court ruled on an application for the release of seven Durban detainees — Archie GUMEDE, George SEWPKERSADH, M.J. NAIDOO, Mewa RAMGOBIN, Sam KIKINE, Kader HASSIM and Billy NAIR. Mr. Justice Law ordered their release on the grounds that the orders served on them were invalid because the Minister of Law and Order had failed to give reasons for his actions. Without knowing the reasons for their detention the detainees were unable to excercise their right under the law to make representations to the Review Board (RDM 10.9.84).
The minister responded by thwarting a similar court action in the Transvaal until he had served new detention orders on ten detainees there — Terror LEKOTA, Curtis NKONDO, Muntu MYEZA, Haroon PATEL, Aubrey MOKOENA, Essop JASSAT, Mahomede SALOOJEE, Jerry THLOPANE, Andries MAPETLA and Moss CHIKANE. The minister also issued new detention orders on the seven Durban detainees whom he ordered to be released. In both cases he did not expand on his reasons for the detentions — he stated to do so would not be in the public interest. On 1 September application for the release of eight Transvaal detainees was refused (RDM 10/11.84).
Police searched unsuccessfully for the Durban detainees until 13 September when five of the men — Gumede, Sewpersad, Naidoo, Ramgobin, and Nair — applied for temporary asylum in the British consulate in Durban whilst legal actions challenging the re-detention orders went ahead. They were accompanied by Paul DAVID, president of the Release Mandela Campaign, who had not previously been arrested. Kikine and Hassim remained in hiding.
On 21 September the Pietermaritzburg Supreme Court heard an urgent application for an injunction invalidating detention orders on the six men (Paul David by then also faced a civil order). Judgement was reserved at the request of the applicants for the three judges to adequately consider the six grounds of appeal (RDM 22.9.84).
