AROUND THE WORLD
South Africa Amon Msane arrested AMON MSANE, the chief trade-union steward at the 3M company's plant near Johannesburg, South
Africa, was arrested on February 19 while supporting a supermarket strike. He is being held in an undisclosed location without charges under South Africa's emergency law.
Msane spoke at a conference organized by the US publication, Labor Notes, last November. (See IV No.
111, December 22, 1986. At the conference, New Directions for Labor, he emphasized the importance of international solidarity and cooperation among workers who work for the same multinational corporations.
Previously, Msane led a strike of South African 3M workers in support of 3M workers in New Jersey whose plant was being closed.
This is the second time within the last year that Msane has been arrested. Last summer, he was held for a month after his return from the trip to the United States. He was released after widespread protests to the South African government and the 3M company.
Labor Notes is urging people to publicize the arrest and to send messages of protest to South African embassies to demand Msane's release. Copies of letters and resolutions should also be sent to Solidarity Network, Labor Notes, PO Box 20001, Detroit, Michigan 48220. USA. Czechoslovakia Charter activist on trial PALACH PRESS, an independent press agency based in London has sent us details of the arrest on January 22 of Petr Pospichal, a 27year old Czech worker from Bro, Moravia and a Charter 77 activist.
On February 3, Pospichal was charged with the criminal offence of subversion of the Republic, under an article of the penal code which carries a prison sentence of 3-10 years and possible subsequent sur26 veillance.
In the words of the indictment, Pospichal is alleged to have "from a date which has not been ascertained, but certainly at least from mid1985 until his arrest, out of active hostility to the socialist and state system of the Republic, collected written material, both foreign -particularly Polish - and domestic, in whose production he participated, and made the contents of these documents, notably so-called Informace o Charter 77 and others, known to a wider circle of young people. and established active contact with the Polish hostile grouping, so-called "Solidarity' * as well as with hostile persons in the Czechoslovak emigre circles abroad."
The Committee for the Defence of the Unjustly Prosecuted (VONS) have issued an international appeal calling on labour movement, human rights and religious organizations to take up Petr Pospichal's case, particularly organizations in other Eastern European countries.
On February 12, in Prague and
Brno, a Committee for the Release of Petr Pospichal was established including well-known Chartists, religious figures, writers and so on. Several members are staging hunger strikes to draw attention to his case.
The Provisional Council of Solidarnose issued a declaration protesting against Pospichal's arrest on February 17, and expressing their special affinity with Charter 77 activists. Included among other Eastern European organizations to express their solidarity was the independent Polish peace movement, Freedom and Peace.
This case is of particular importance because when the trial takes place, it will not only be Charter 77 and VONS who will be in the dock but the cooperation between the Czechoslovak and Polish democratic oppositions and the basic principle of the right of East European citizens to travel between their countries and have access to information about each other. To convict Pospichal on these charges would mean a violation of the principle of "detente from below" embodied in the Helsinki Final Act.
It is believed that one of the main reasons for the trial and the harsh sentence is that the Czech government is increasingly worried about the growing exchanges, and even cooperation, between Charter 77, Solidarnosc and other opposition groups in Hungary and East Germany.
This cooperation was highlighted last October when 122 prominent dissidents from these four East European countries signed a joint statement commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Hungarian revolution. (See IV No. 108, November 10, 1986.) Belgium
Marxism vs liberalism A PACKED meeting of over 600 people at the University of Louvain on February 17 listened to a highpowered debate around the theme of whether Marxist or free enterprise ideology was the best basis for combatting the capitalist crisis.
The protagonists in the debate were both well-known economic theorists. Ernest Mandel, a leading member of the Fourth International and its
Belgian section, the POS/SAP, and a world-famous Marxist economist and writer defended a materialist analysis of the crisis and the need for a working class response. In the opposing corner was Paul De Grauwe, a specialist in monetarist economics.
The discussion covered a wide area, centering around the argument of "who should pay for the crisis?" and was registered as a great success by the student organizers, the Werkgroep Andere Keonomie - Alternative Economics Working Group. Britain Fight racism rally "FIGHTING racism, defending Labour councils and campaigning for socialism" was the theme of the first public meeting organized by Campaign Forum on January 16 in London.
The rally was jointly organized by the Campaign Group of Labour Members of Parliament (MPs) and the Labour Party Black Section -a national organization of Black people in the Labour Party that is not officially recognized by the LP leadership.
Over 600 people came to hear a broad range of speakers, including leader of Lambeth council Linda Bellos, Gul Zarina Khan from the
International Viewpoint 23 March 1987
Black Section Notional Tinion
Black Section, National Union of Mineworkers' leader Arthur Scargill and MPs Tony Benn, Eric Heffer and Jeremy Corbyn. There were also other speakers from various defence campaigns, and from the Women's Action Committee in the Labour Party.
The meeting was important in two respects. First, because of the vital need for the most united and broad campaign against racism both inside the labour movement and in general, particularly in the context that a general election could be declared at any time this year by the Tory government. As Linda Bellos explained: "In every general election in living memory, the Tories have played the race card. Let us hope that this platform presents a change. The change is that Labour isn't going to play it as well."