Reports of police and army activities in enforcing the State of Emergency and suppressing resistance have been vigorously censored. However, statements by the government's Bureau for Information point to continuous conflicts with township residents.
Isolated reports indicate police and army involvement in breaking boycotts and strikes, breaking up trade union and other meetings, controlling funerals, and on one occasion breaking up a school sports meeting with teargas, rubber bullets and live ammunition.
During the second half of last year, black universities became particular targets of police and army action following student protests and organisation. The University of the North was occupied by units of the South African Police (SAP) and Defence Force (SADF) and the Lebowa bantustan police, apparently because the authorities believed it to be the centre of community resistance in the Northern Transvaal. Police and soldiers issued identity cards to students and set up two bases on the campus from which they controlled the movement of students.
Township deployments have strained army resources. In many urban areas only about half of all Citizen Force (part-time) troops conscripted for stints of operational duty have been obeying their call-up orders. To relieve the pressure on the army, conscripts in the navy and air force have been retrained and deployed to counter 'unrest'.
It remains the regime's long-term objective to replace many of the troops in urban deployment with police, particularly black police. In 1984 a ten-year recruitment programme was drawn up to double the strength of the South African police and 6,000 new members were reported to have been added to the force last year. Total police strength is expected to rise from its present level of about 56,000 to almost 100,000 in the next few years.
The government has also authorised the recruitment and training of 17,000 council police, officially termed Law Enforcement Officers.
Residents Fight Back Bureau for Information reports indicate that incidents where police or army patrols have been attacked by residents are amongst the most common conflicts in 'unrest' situations. In some cases the reports have been shown to be false - residents have stated that police started the conflicts by assaulting local people or opening fire on peaceful demonstrations, funerals and other gatherings. However, in many areas instead of merely waiting for police or troops to attack, residents have been setting ambushes for patrols. Many of these have involved stonings, stabbings and petrol bombings but increasingly ambushes are being carried out with automatic weapons or hand grenades. In most cases where police have been killed, their weapons have been taken from them.
Some incidents appear to have involved large numbers of armed residents. In November last year police were involved in a six-hour gun battle with residents in Soweto West, while the Bureau for Information reported in December that 'about 20 black people opened fire on members of the security forces in Katlehong (near Germiston)'.
According to the Minister of Law and Order, 27 members of the police force were killed and 185 wounded during 'unrest' in 1986 - it is not clear if Town Council police and Special Constables are included in this figure. The Minister of Defence refused to disclose the number of SADF troops killed or injured, on the grounds that it was 'not in the national interest'.
