African Activist Archive

The policy statement says rising popular resistance and government repression in South Africa has only now placed apartheid high in the consciousness of the people and government of the United States, despite apartheid's inherent violence which for decades has divided families, destroyed human life and assaulted the human spirit. A consensus is developing in the U.S. that the status quo in South Africa must and will change. The future of South Africa ultimately will be determined by South Africans, particularly by the majority who have been excluded from political power. Meaningful change requires comprehensive repeal of all of apartheid's legal underpinnings, including the Group Areas Act, labor laws, Influx Control Act, the Population Registration Act, and the current Constitution. South Africa's illegal occupation of Namibia and its military incursions and destabilization of neighboring countries are required to defend its domestic apartheid policies. The U.S. must exert leadership in seeking the end to such South African intervention. Beyond apartheid's abolition, a profound redress of the vast disparities of wealth and power is needed, which have been the legacy of apartheid and centuries of exploitation. The excesses under the current emergency decree have revealed even more clearly the violence and injustice that have always been integral to the apartheid system. The statement mentions one person, one vote, the Old Testament, homelands, economic sanctions, and anti-communism.

African Activist Archive

Proposed AFSC Statement on South Africa

Supporting Paper for Agenda Item # BD-5

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