IN 1966 the UN voted to end South Africa's mandate to govern Namibia. Member states were recognise South' Africa's presence as illegal and 'refrain from any acts and in particular any dealings government of South Africa implying recognition of, or the legality of, or lending support or assistance to, such presence and administration.
wealth were prohibited International Court.
The British-based multinational, Rio Tinto Zinc (RTZ) defied the UN. Tony Benn; Minister of Technology in 1969; secretly authorised RTZ to supply half nf uranium imports This, the largest single investment in Namibia, aids the illegal and brutal occupation of the country. government?
Benn did not disclose the details of this. controversial deal, Cabinet thought that only one, rather than two, contracts were involved.
In 1970 "Overseas Policy and Committee' (note the mix) met to reconsider the deal. Its results were not disclosed. A 'secret inquiry' was conducted by Barbara discover how the Technology had 'authorised contact.
No were continuing the contract, indeed it was specifically decided to keep it under wraps during the 1970 In 1976, when Benn was Secretary of State for Energy, he refused to disclose details regarding the supply routes and payments on the contracts. After all it would have been a breach of the National Security Acts of the apartheid state and the British Official Secrets Act! democracy?
The contract finally public under the Tories! A campaign was mounted in the Labour Party for termination of the contract and the 1973 Labour Party promised to end the contract. surprise, surprise, it was not included in Wilson's election manifesto.
After a few inquiries, the issue was relegated to the party branches. 1976 the Labour Party characterised the contract "shameful", "illegal' and called for its termination. The Labour conference cnqorsca (ne call. The Cabinet refused to give way, despite RTZ having broken price and deadline agreements.
Even if Benn was 'outvoted', certainly did not make public chain of secrecy, the manipulation, the subsidy to African sponsorship of the RTZ monopoly, and so on. He certainly did not consider the flouting of international law and LP conference decisions as a sufficient reason to resign. Socialism?
The national liberation movement in Namibia is led by the South-West African (SWAPO). It has been engaged in a bloody and escalating armed struggle the Any by the Britain's Namibia.
Even the Labour Cabinet's Business Castle to Minister of the given for Géneral use, became Manifesto But In executive 6 só 100 The the for national independence.
service the martial law. the Tony responsible, could never have British Nuclear Organisation vital natural resources.
Profits will be nearly f65m a year. THE LABOUR Left is today without a foreign policy. Instead of even attemr ting to develop an internationalist strategy, the left in the last Labour Cabinet defended the Foreign Office and the interests of British capitalism.
Nowhere was this more obvious than in Namibia. And no Minister was more involved than Tony Benn. The inside story LOCATION OF ROSSING MINE IN NAMIBIA ANGOLA Rossing Mine Walvis Bay 200MLs per include cent of the population is under white Benn has been primarily behalf of successive Labour governments, for providing £150m of public money to lowest assist RTZ and the South African Without the two contracts RTZ raised sufficient Greene, finance to develop the Rossing mine.
Fuels, which later
took over the contract, paid £159m, which will go towards mining costs to help remove one of arid Namibia's now for foreign shareholders These (CANUC). It shows how government', Windhoek Lord Carrington. monies will be paid in taxes and duties - a high proportion of which is spent by the South Africans on maintaining its 70,000 strong occupation army The 2,000 black workers are the paid mine country. Is this what is meant by 'socialism', planning agreements' and 'worker directors' (Lord Sidne La former TUC bigwig who sits on the RTZ board!)
would the workers Rossing make of this 'socialism'? Those who used to work in Rossing's derelict 'Wedgewood Shaft' issued a statement recently.-It 'As the illegal exploitation of our of Britain's secret contract for Namibian uranium is told in 'The Rossing released this week by the Campaign Against the Namibian Uranium Contracts makes sorry reading.
Benn disregarded 'open "party BOTSWANA SOUTH AFRICA Other mineral resources continues recommendations, lifting Windhoek to Britain is unseen, while SWAPO of Namibia is waging an armed struggle and at the same time mobilising the Namibian wasses... ner enors are twared Di your share in this illegal operation.
Consequently you are enriching racist South Africa... while at continue to exploit Rossiag uranian mine, black wOrkeTS exploited...
Benn •Working in the hot san, to the ever-present cyclonic wind...
File, Swakopmund...
It democracy' and hospital, privacy and discuss Our fire the Minister, ZAMBIA decisions. separate "unlawful', facto". 70,000 obscenities Callaghan agreed to the of handing out plunder...
Product the Cumbria Benn's British Labour Namibia, After Namibia defiance of- UN your large scale Namibian uranium going South country.
the again beavily "The in the dust prodaced by the 1 Socialist Challenge our bodies are covered in dust and one can hardly recognise us... the nearest clinic is 130 km. to and from and... is very complicated to be consented to absent from work for medical purposes.
'We are accommodated eight to ten people in one cell... there is no transport to the clinic... there is no bathing... or any recreational facilities. There is no we are not allowed to interest... we the workers of Namibis lodge our appeal to you to cease your lifting of uranium to Britain.' We have concentrated our fire on Tony Benn for one major reason. He most important leader of left-wing The chief architect of Labour's policy was, of James Callaghan, first Foreign Secretary and later as Prim Callaghan and the French decided to reject International Court ruling and the Security Council resolution.
Callaghan explained in 1974 why Britain did not abide by the UN He brushed aside judgements by the International Court on Namibia and countless UN resolutions.
The leader of the British Labour Party explained that while the South African occupation of Namibia was it was nonetheless "de Compare the acceptance of South African troops Namibia to the hypocritical howls of outrage on Afghanistan. Callaghan's encountered opposition from the Labour left.
After a trip to Lusaka in 1974 where he met some SWAPO officials.
claimed that ther had contracts. SWAPO issued a series of virulent denials. But Labour ministers continued to these lies to justify their illicit trade.
In 1919, a Russian revolutionary leader, V I Lenin, stated:
When they (the imperialists) talk mandates for th administration of the colonies, know very well that it means handing mandates for spoilation and Since 1945 over 35 per cent of Namibia's Gross Domestic Product has seen sent abroad government publication lists Namibia as having the highest rate of profit.
In 1977, Tony Benn threatened striking Windscale workers with the use of British troops. Their leaders were threatened prosecution under the rarely. used 1875 Conspiracy Act.
Tanure to disentangle condemned the workers and peasants of Namibia to the iron heel of the soldiers of apartheid.
Mugabe's victory in Zimbabwe, the attention of the West is already shifting to Namibia. The British left needs to focus on Namibia assure a victory for So. an at ensure a victory for SWAPO.
complete the encirclement of Africa and provide another boost to the black masses of that For a start Benn should publicly explain his role in Namibia and his supporters should tell us what the will do if Labour is elected to offia North Gower Street, London NWI. Enclose 60p including postage.
13 March 1980 Page 7
Labour candidate Maurice Edelman described the 1945 election campaign When left Labour MP Frank Allaun opened last year's Labour Party conference he referred to the Labour administration of 1945-51 as the 'greatest government we have ever had'.
That may be true, but it is only because there is little of socialist value with which to compare that government.
And yet in the last year many left Labour leaders — Tony Benn, Eric Heffer among them — have cited the 1945-51 Government as the example to be followed by the Labour Party in the future.
But what does that example represent? What was the real record of Labour in these years? GEOFF BELL examines its history. Government: "Mr Gaitskell introduces a Tory Labour appear there were
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Swakopmund ATLANTIC OCEAN
'socialism'. NAMIBIA