It became clear in April that most detainees released since the end of March had been placed under restriction orders. This was confirmed by government figures.
The number of restricted people was estimated by the Durban-based Detainees Co-Ordinating Committee (DCC) to be over 700, including some children (see CHILDREN). The use of restrictions has been widely criticised by South African opposition groups. The DCC said that restrictions on individuals force 'them, their families and the community at large into a situation where they become warders, prosecutors and potential state witnesses'.
A number of restricted people have defied their orders. In May, several were reported to have broken them in the wake of the murder of Chris Ntuli and in order to attend the funeral of another murdered activist David Webster (see Activists assassinated). Earlier, at the end of March six restricted people did not report to the police, as their orders required, and occupied the British embassy in Pretoria for 27 hours. Donsie KHUMALO, Selebogo MABENA, Michael SELOANE, Ignatius JACOBS, Grace DUBE, and Sandy LESEBE issued a statement protesting that the restrictions on them and others denied them the 'right of living' in that they were denied freedom of speech, movement and association as well as a normal family life. They demanded that all restrictions be lifted. On leaving the embassy they said they would continue to defy their orders.
Enforcement To enforce restriction orders the police have either charged people with breaking the order or simply detained them. Contravention of restrictions, as with all emergency regulations carries a fine of up to R20,000 or 10 years in prison without the option of a fine.
Although no immediate action was taken against the six embassy protesters. On 1 June, Donsie Khumalo was charged with contravening his restriction order. It was not clear whether the charge arose out of his involvement in the British Embassy Protest. At least three other people have appeared in court charged with breaking their restriction orders. Mzonke 'Whitey' JACOBS who was restricted on July 1988 was arrested in February and charged with breaking his restriction order. Abbey LEKOALETSOE, from Soweto, also restricted in July 1988, made his first court appearance in March. In April the chair of the Soweto Consumer Boycott Committee, Jabu NGWENYA, who has been restricted since February 1988, was charged after allegedly having been absent from his home on various dates in December and January. A fifth man, Joseph MOKOBANE, was re-detained in March for failing to comply with the restriction order placed on him on his release in February after two and a half years in detention.
Effects of restrictions Restrictions have a profound impact on all those affected, but for some the effects are particularly harsh. As reported in FOCUS 82, a number of people may be restricted to places other than their home towns, effectively banishing them. Thembile BETE, from Port Elizabeth, is restricted to Alexandria, 100 km away. In April, however, two former detainees, Daniel TOM (20) and Simon MNYAKA (22) took legal action which resulted in the overturning of orders barring them from their home town of Upington.
Others may be placed under virtual house arrest. Octavius MAGUNDA and Sam SEMETSE are confined to their homes from 2 pm to 10 am. They were detained for over two years and only released after more than 20 days on hunger strike. In the four hours they are allowed out of their homes they must report to the police twice. Similar restrictions apply to Leleki MSOKOLI, a former detainee and to Pillay MDAT-YULWA and Vuyisile MALENGENI who each spent almost three years in detention.
In April another former detainee, Thembinkosi Bhekizita 'Baba' DLAMINI, brought an action in the Supreme Court challenging the validity of an order confining him to his home for 20 hours a day. The case was due to begin in June. Dlamini, formerly an education officer for the Natal Youth Congress, must report to the police twice daily between 10 am and 2 pm. In his application he said that the conditions make him vulnerable to attack by vigilantes because his movements were widely known. These fears were exacerbated by the killing of another restricted member of the Natal Youth Congress, Chris Ntuli, on his way back from reporting to the police under similar circumstances (see Activists assassinated).
Restrictions often have financial implications. In the words of the Human Rights Commission: 'The restriction orders often have the effect of prohibiting the person from returning to their profession or the conditions of the order are so constraining that they render the person unemployable.' People may also be forced to spend large amounts on travelling to and from police stations. Godfrey MOEKOA, who was served with a restriction order in March on his release after 33 months in detention, has to report twice daily to a police station 150 km from his home. The journey costs him R420 per day.
