editorial
U.S. doesn't help
apartheid victims
The state of emergency imposed in South Africa is an ef
fort to stop the bloodshed of the nation’s people, most of
whom are black. Or so Pieter Botha. South Africa’s presi
dent. and others of the white minority government, would
have you believe. In reality, the tyranny is a desperate at
tempt to dismantle the opposition to the government, and its
system of apartheid, before the opposition destroys the
government. What better way to destroy the movement that
was beginning to threaten the government's stability, than
to remove ail rights from those who support it; to break up
families, arrest opposition leaders and threaten public
demonstrators with disappearance and death.
The state of emergency gives the government and its
security forces almost unlimited power over its people.
Under its provisions, authorities can detain and arrest
citizens without charges or access to a lawyer, seal off entire
townships, and even shoot blacks without fear of reprisal.
More than 1.000 have been arrested since the emergency
was declared July 20. and because the government doesn’t
feel the need to disclose where many of the arrested are be
ing held, many have virtually disappeared. Those that had
few rights before, now have none.
In the face of this blatant violation of human rights, the
Reagan administration continues to stand by its policy of
“constructive engagement," which stresses maintaining
diplomatic relations with South Africa in order to somehow
persuade the government there to change apartheid policies.
But it is difficult to accept that the Reagan administra
tion genuinely believes that this policy of gentle nudging is
going to convince the South African government to relen
quish its reign of power over the nation, particularly when it
took massive demonstrations and protests to give blacks
equal legal status in this country. Rarely is power relen
quished graciously.
The administration refuses to support the imposition of
economic sanctions on the nation, clashing with both
houses of Congress, France and the United Nations Security
Council. The House and Senate approved similiar sanctions
against South Africa even before the state of emergency was
imposed. France recalled its ambassador last week and ban
ned any new investments in the country, and led the U.N.
Security Council in voting to encourage nations to ban new
investments and impose economic sanctions on the country.
The administration claims that economic sanctions will
hurt black South Africaas, citing the jobs and money provid
ed for blacks by U.S. firms. But what black South Africans
need is an end to apartheid, and the bottom line remains that
“constructive engagement” has done nothing to achieve
this aim. If the South African government were faced with
sanctions from all of its major trading partners, it would be
more receptive to change.
But the only thing the Reagan administration has done,
is to repeat a familiar performance witnessed when interna
tional crises crop up: sharpened its rhetoric. After verbally
condemning the action, the administration asked the South
African government to lift the state of emergency.
Of course, when the layers of rhetoric are peeled away,
the real reason the United States continues to support the
government of South Africa is not because it is felt that
blacks will benefit from the actions of the United States, but
because the government is interested in protecting about $5
billion worth of investments in the country.
But in the long run, the blacks of South Africa will suc
ceed in seizing power. And if they remember the United
States’ policy of “constructive engagement” with the
government that oppressed them, our investments will cer
tainly be in peril.
emerald
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I
Z I
K STAtt OF EMgfiSgHCY
letters
Religion
Tom Visoky (ODE. July 18)
argued for prayer in public
schools by quoting George
Will’s “22-page" analysis of
Justice Rehnquist’s dissent from
the recent Alabama Case "prov
ing that the authors of the
Establishment Clause intended
to.prevent partiality toward any
particular sect, not to require
neutrality between religion and
irreligion.” He also paraphrases'
a “212-page" essay by john
Whitehead by substituting
“Christian sect" for "sect” and
“Christianity and secularism"
for "religion and irreligion" in
the above quote.
Visoky’s presuppositions that
longer essays Contain deeper
truth, and that one person can
"prove" what another intended
or thought, are absurd. A first
hand estimate is only approx
imate without feedback. A 200
year separation and indirect
sources degrade this further. In
his choice of paraphrase.
Visoky attempts to establish a
third presupposition, that the
concept of "religion” is to be
equated with "Christianity."
Such sectarianism may have
been an element in the authors'
minds. But the horrendous tor
ture and murder of 9 million
persons, mostly women, accus
ed of believing in the Goddess
Religion of Europe (witchcraft),
by many Christian sects, con
tinued in English speaking
countries until 1730. I would
like to see a convincing "proof"
that the Constitutional authors
were not mindful of this 80
years later, when “The Inquisi
tion’’, is a household word 200
years later.
Finally, suppose the authors
did not conceive of the need to
protect the non-religious from
Christian bigots. • Wisdom re
mains such only if it is con
tinually extended to. the.
previously unconceived.
....
Jack Straton
Graduate student
Physics
Abortion
The editorial printed in the
July 18 ODE strikes me as fail
ing to provide an- adequate
apswnr to the problem it ad
dresses. Abortion is indeed a
symptom, not merely of poor
sex education or of unwanted,
pregnancies, but of the moral
vacuum that has engulfed pur
culture. Child abuse is also a
symptom. Both must be fought,
however, , because of the
grievous wrong that they inflict
on the helpless.
Having discarded the
framework of biblical,
guidelines given to us for our
benefit and protection by the
One who designed us and
created us to share His ex
istence, we are left without a
foundation for moral distinc
tions; whatever “seems O.K."
is ail the morality that we have
left. Since individuals disagree
about what is right, whoever is
strongest or most adept at
manipulating others is the
“rightest.”
Unwanted pregnancy and the
refusal to recognize the right of
the unborn to exist, are
themselves symptomatic of an
attitude that says, “I will do as I
please, regardless of any conse
quences." followed by, "lt.'s »
not my fault.’.’ Our generation .
ha# said to its children. *'go out.
and make up ydur own rules'
about right and wrong, ’’• We are
now experiencing some of the
results ,of-such “freedom”-.' the
statistics on teen-age emotional
problems, drug and .alcohol
abuse, suicides and crimes of
Violence against others suggest
that perhaps these young peo
ple need the moral training that
we are denying them. .Wisdom ;.
tells us to treat the disease, not
just the symptoms! •• . • .
’ «r . * /
' William Moore. .
^ ■ . Music
... Classified .
You said you vyere too young
to understand, Mr. Olum.
Not responsible for the death .. .
and destruction of the bomb
Taken from college to work
on a top secrnt/classified project
During the Second World •
War,
Or so you tell the world .
How sorry you are for all
those who died,
But.you couldn't tell a soul
U n t i If M a nha11 a n war
unclassified.
Would things have been dif- .
ferent somehow
If you took responsibility and
said,
"I will not allow secrecy. .1
will not allow another person,
animal or plant
To face the cruelty, violence,
death or destruction
Ever again."
Besides ... what have you to
hide?
The free exchange of
information
Is UNCLASSIFIED.
Richard Cold
Eugene
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