Page 2452 - Week 11 - Thursday, 2 November 1989
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The sequence of events that led to the murder trial and the sentencing to death of the Upington 14 followed the gathering of several hundred people in Upington to protest against the rent increases in that town and overcrowding. The police moved in to disperse the crowds with tear gas. It is reported that one group ran past the home of a black local policeman who had allegedly shot a pregnant woman the week before. The group hurled stones at the policeman's house. He fired shots in return.
All of these events, I think, are beyond the imagination of people in Canberra, because I do not think the people in Canberra could imagine the depth of oppression which is suffered by the black people in South Africa. One of the shots that was fired by the policeman crippled a 10-year-old boy and then the policeman ran out of his house. Some of the group gave chase and caught and disarmed and eventually killed the policeman. One individual was found guilty of killing the policeman but, by virtue of the common purpose laws which are practised by the racist regime in South Africa, 24 others were convicted of the murder, 14 of whom have been sentenced to death, though many would not have had any part at all in the murder.
I raise that today in the adjournment debate, firstly, to highlight the plight of those awaiting execution. They have been on death row for many years now, and it is an absolutely horrifying piece of work, I would suggest, to hold people on death row for so long. It is just torture. I would also like to draw attention to the regime consciously using judicial execution to murder opponents of the regime as well as terrorising broad masses of the South African people.
There is growing use of the so-called common purpose law. This is not the first time this has happened. The Sharpeville six were another famous group that were sentenced by the same law, and now the Upington 14 is a classic example of the use of this sort of terrorism by the racist regime. Of course the real aim of sentencing the patriots under the common purpose law is to send a message to people present at a political rally or incident, that they could end up on the gallows as a result of their participating in protests against the racist regime.
I would like also to draw attention to a rally outside the South African embassy tomorrow to protest against these events and, of course, against the racist South African regime.
South Africa
MRS GRASSBY (Minister for Housing and Urban Services) (5.20): I would like to support my colleague on this. Before I was married I travelled through that country.
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