In addition to protests by prisoners there was news towards the end of 1988 of organisations formed by ex-prisoners to take care of their interests. The National Union of Ex-Prisoners for Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation (NUEPFOCAR) was launched nationally in August 1988. One month later the Prisoners' Welfare Programme (PRIWELPRO), a similar organisation operating in the Transkei bantustan, was banned by the administration there.
EX-PRISONERS ORGANISE
On 7 September, 17 months after its launch, PRIWELPRO was declared an unlawful organisation under the Transkei Public Security Act. PRIWELPRO was established by two former political prisoners - Vuma NTIKINCA and M M MBETE - to cater for the welfare of current, awaiting-trial and former prisoners, detainees, banned people and their dependants. It organised legal and educational aid and self-help projects, and undertook research into conditions of prisoners and detainees in the bantustan.
NUEPFOCAR was initiated in Durban in 1987 by Jerry NGXOLA, a former South African Allied Workers Union organiser, while he was serving a six-year sentence imposed for his union activities.
In August NUEPFOCAR, which involves both former political prisoners and those convicted on other charges, had 2,500 members in Natal and 'a few thousand in other provinces'. The union runs workshops in literacy, legal rights and vocational training, operates as an employment agency, and helps former prisoners with accommodation. By November it had undertaken building and renovation projects in Pinetown and Inanda and had started a carpentry collective. A branch of the union was launched in the Transvaal in January 1989. NUEPFOCAR has close links with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and consults with other anti-apartheid organisations on particular projects.
AUTHORITIES CHALLENGED
In September, at the same time as PRIWELPRO'S banning, Colonel Jumba, officer in charge of Wellington Prison in the Transkei bantustan, responded to a court challenge initiated by five inmates to declare conditions in the prison illegal. Whilst contending that circumstances in Wellington were not unlawful, his affidavit confirmed many of the prisoners' allegations.
Jumba admitted that 99, and at one point 123, prisoners were held in a cell with only one toilet. According to one of the applicants, the cell measured four metres by five. Jumba disclosed that it was 'impossible' for all inmates 'to place bedding down separately on the floor' and that the kitchen was designed to cater for only a third of the actual number of prisoners.
At Klerksdorp Prison five women political prisoners began a hunger strike on 9 December. Whilst the reasons for the protest were not reported, it was known to involve four women sentenced under the Internal Security Act for ANC activities and another serving a one-year sentence arising from community protests. One of the protesters, Lilian KEAGILE, who is soon to complete a six-year sentence, was subsequently transferred to Kroonstad Prison. Keagile's family were concerned that she was not moved nearer to her home, as they believed was usual for prisoners about to complete a sentence.
Keagile was sentenced in March 1983 for activities as an ANC courier and undergoing military training. Of the other women, Nontem-biso NDABENI and Gertrude SOFUTE have served one year of six-year sentences for ANC activities, undergoing military training and importing arms. Regina MADUMISE began a five-year gaol term in June 1988 for ANC activities while Gloria TWALA was sentenced to one year in April 1988.
MANDELA MOVED
Nelson Mandela was transferred from Constantiaberg Clinic to a house at Victor Verster Prison near Paarl on 7 December. The move was condemned by Mandela's lawyer, Ismail Ayob, as cruel and retrogressive - Mandela's isolation had increased, but his prison status remained unchanged. Winnie Mandela rejected Pretoria's offer of 'unlimited access' for his family, stating that 'until all political prisoners were given the same privileges' only standard 40-minute visits would be made.
