Issue No. 1 of 'Focus' bulletin, dated November 1975, detailing the intensification of political repression in Southern Africa, including mass detentions, torture, political trials under the Terrorism Act, and increasing use of banning orders. Specific cases, trials, and legislative actions in South Africa, Rhodesia, and Namibia are described.

This issue details the South African invasion of southern Angola, including town occupations, bombings, and destruction of infrastructure. It provides accounts of torture and abuse of SWAPO detainees, repression in Namibia under conscription, destruction of the Anglican seminary in Odibo, mass pass arrests in the Cape, increased military and police operations in urban areas, and ongoing political detentions and trials of trade unionists, students, and ANC members. Notably, testimonies of detainees, statistics on South African aggression in Angola, and reports on religious persecution and the expansion of South African military bases are included.

Issue 37 provides detailed reporting on repression in the Ciskei bantustan, the South African invasion of Angola (Operation Protea), political detentions, bannings, student and trade union trials, and prison conditions. It includes first-hand accounts, trial updates (including those of Oscar Mpetha and ANC guerillas), figures on political prisoners, juvenile detentions, and restrictions on journalists. Reports also highlight police violence, attacks on press freedom, and widespread protest against 'independence' imposed on Ciskei.

This issue reports on the tightening of apartheid security laws following the Rabie Commission, including proposed new terrorism, subversion, and sabotage laws. It details intensified repression across South Africa and Namibia, mass detentions, psychological torture, political trials, and restrictions on the press. The issue also includes a major review of the South African Police, extensive political trial updates (including Barbara Hogan, Oscar Mpetha, and SWAPO guerrillas), and the arrest and detention of many students, trade unionists, and church workers. Notably, it reports hunger strikes and deaths in custody, and increasing international protest against detention conditions.

This issue documents the worsening prison conditions for Nelson Mandela and fellow political prisoners at Pollsmoor Prison, state-sanctioned forced removals and the killing of community leader Saul Mkhize, child malnutrition and mortality in resettlement camps, mass detentions and psychiatric abuse of detainees, repression in the Ciskei bantustan, and the execution of ANC guerrillas. It provides updates on extensive political trials including Oscar Mpetha, Cedric Mayson, Siphiwe Makhathini, and Angula Mwaala (SWAPO). The issue contains a special review of state witnesses, torture allegations, and continuing evidence of apartheid legal manipulation and brutality.

Issue 49 focuses on violent repression of SWAPO activism in Namibia during the UN Secretary-General’s visit, the ongoing arrests and torture of activists, and bans on key political figures. It includes detailed lists of restricted and detained persons, coverage of constitutional resistance through the UDF’s launch, and increasing detentions of students and trade unionists in South Africa. It also highlights the torture of detainees, psychiatric abuse, and the use of treason trials to suppress dissent. The issue documents major political trials, mass protests, state censorship, and population clearances in the Kavango region of Namibia.

Issue 55 chronicles the intensified resistance to apartheid in South Africa, focusing on rent boycotts, township uprisings, school and university protests, mass detentions, and political trials. It documents electoral boycotts of the segregated parliament, bans on political gatherings, deaths in detention, and brutal state repression. Coverage includes SWAPO's military and political strength in Namibia, press censorship, and war zone atrocities in the Kavango region. Also featured are trials of student activists, trade unionists, and members of banned organisations such as the ANC and AZAPO.

Issue 57 outlines the intensifying political repression in South Africa and Namibia during early 1985. It highlights escalating political trials, over 1,100 detentions in 1984, censorship and state raids on press agencies, the trial of SWAPO fighters under repressive conditions, and the growing use of the Internal Security Act. The issue reports on community resistance, school boycotts, labour union suppression, press censorship, and constitutional manipulation to preserve apartheid structures. It includes detailed trial summaries, prisoner lists, and coverage of Nelson Mandela’s conditional release rejection.

This issue of FOCUS covers legal and political developments in South Africa and Namibia during July-August 1990, including proposed changes to death sentence laws, commutation of political prisoners' sentences, political and labour trials, repression of workers and students, and violence in the Natal region attributed to Inkatha and police complicity. Includes case studies, trial reports, and background on the humanitarian work of IDAF.

This issue of FOCUS reports on political trials, police repression, right-wing violence, and restrictions on freedom of assembly in South Africa during September-October 1990. It documents ongoing political trials, hunger strikes, police and army actions against protests, right-wing vigilante violence, and the legal and social context of state repression. Includes case studies, trial outcomes, and incidents of violence, as well as updates on legislation and the activities of unions and youth organizations.