Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- July 1978 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
1 newsletter (multi-page, printed text)
Context area
Name of creator
Repository
Archival history
Archived as part of the IDAF series focused on political trials, detention, and legal advocacy during apartheid.
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
South African History Archive (SAHA)
Content and structure area
Scope and content
This issue documents intensified repression in South Africa, Zimbabwe (Rhodesia), and Namibia. Topics include the banning of lawyers, new prison access restrictions, curbs on foreign legal funding, mass detentions including children, police torture, and the Mothopeng trial. Highlights include the death penalty for Solomon Mahlangu, the Kassinga massacre in Angola, the targeting of Catholic youth, and the rise in political prisoners. It also reports on secret detentions, attacks on educational groups, and the censorship of legal representation.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Retained permanently for historical research on Southern African political repression and human rights violations.
Accruals
No further accruals expected.
System of arrangement
Chronologically organized within the IDAF 'Focus' bulletin series.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Open for public research and reference.
Conditions governing reproduction
Reproduction allowed with proper citation of IDAF as source.
Language of material
English
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
OCR text version; clean and legible scan of original bulletin.
Finding aids
Uploaded finding aid
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Originals held by the South African History Archives.
Existence and location of copies
Digital copy available through the PWP projects and other Archives.
Related units of description
Focus Issues 1–16; Kassinga massacre documentation; trials of Solomon Mahlangu and the Pretoria Twelve.
Publication note
Focus', Issue No. 17. International Defence and Aid Fund, July 1978.
Notes area
Note
Extensive coverage of trials, censorship, detention of minors, international criticism, and the Kassinga massacre aftermath.
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Solomon Mahlangu (Subject)
- Zephania Mothopeng (Subject)
- Steve Biko (Subject)
- Robert Sobukwe (Subject)
- Winnie Mandela (Subject)
- Tim Jenkin (Subject)
- Stephen Lee (Subject)
- Enoch Duma (Subject)
- Anthony Gazi (Subject)
- Elleck Nchabaleng (Subject)
- Vusumuzi Mbatha (Subject)
- Raymond Suttner (Subject)
- Denis Goldberg (Subject)
- Jeremy Cronin (Subject)
- David Kitson (Subject)
- Alexandra Moumbaris (Subject)
- Peter Jones (Subject)
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description, Second Edition
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Language(s)
Script(s)
Sources
Archivist's note
Rich legal and humanitarian reporting. Includes rare insight into minor detainees, state surveillance, and psychological effects of solitary confinement.