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 documents mass executions under Rhodesian martial law, including hangings and firing squad deaths; political trials and detentions in South Africa and Namibia; the torture of SWAPO official Axel Johannes; repression of election activity under Rhodesian martial law; starvation and violence in rural areas; cross-border military raids by South Africa into Angola and Zambia; and detailed lists of political prisoners, detainees, and court rulings. The issue also highlights the censorship of political prisoners, private armies in Zimbabwe, and the use of elections as political manipulation by the Rhodesian regime.

This issue reports on the execution of Solomon Mahlangu, Soweto student trials (Soweto Eleven), new political trial convictions including Mzilikazi Khumalo and Norman Ngwenya, and ongoing PAC and ANC-related legal cases. It covers the death in detention of Mputie Matsobane on Robben Island, detention statistics, banning orders, and claims for damages by families of detainees like Steve Biko and Joseph Mdluli. Zimbabwe elections, martial law, and South African collaboration with the Rhodesian regime are also addressed. Further topics include press censorship, guerrilla detentions, and the militarization of the border zones.

This issue details a new phase of military escalation in Namibia, including South African troop build-ups, air raids in Angola, martial law extensions, and mass detentions in Windhoek. It covers the repression in ‘Zimbabwe-Rhodesia,’ highlighting political trials, executions, the Mothopeng PAC trial, and press censorship. Key developments include the sentencing of PAC members, reports of sexual violence by security forces in protected villages, new appointments to suppress dissent, and the systematic use of curfews and detentions without trial.

This issue details extensive torture allegations in Rhodesia, including specific cases of teenage detainees Benchard and Leavit Katumba, Bibo Chitsedza, and Duster Katanha. It reports on political trials, executions, petitions for clemency, and the expansion of martial law across prisons in Zimbabwe-Rhodesia. It also covers SWAPO detentions in Namibia, repression in South Africa (including bannings, exile, and suppression of political activists), the creation of a South West African Defence Force under South African control, and press censorship. Further reports cover banned and exiled individuals, refugee crises, and new powers granted to police and Bantustans to restrict movement and civil liberties.

This issue centers on the campaign to release Nelson Mandela, political trials involving ANC members, widespread detentions, prison conditions, and regional instability due to South African military incursions into Angola and Zambia. Key trials include those of James Mange, Renfrew Christie, and numerous ANC guerrillas. The issue details amnesties in Zimbabwe, restoration of study rights for political prisoners in South Africa, torture accounts of detained youth, and the banning of religious and civil society organizations in the Transkei. Also discussed are border attacks, military build-ups, and systematic pressure on frontline states.

This issue documents the death sentence imposed on Markus Kateka in Namibia, mass detentions under apartheid and occupation laws, torture and health crises in prisons, political trials involving ANC and SWAPO activists, testimonies of disappearances and cross-border raids, and systemic repression through censorship, bannings, and restrictions on civil society. Highlights include the trials of ANC guerrillas, the SWAPO activist Ida Jimmy, brutal detention of juveniles, the case of Dr. Nafta Hamata, and state-sanctioned killings and disappearances in Namibia. The issue also includes coverage of forced removals, health inequalities under apartheid rule, and testimony to international bodies including the UN and OAU about South African attacks in Angola.

This issue highlights intensified South African military operations in northern Namibia and southern Angola, including troop build-ups, air and land attacks, and damage to Angolan infrastructure. It covers the formation of the South West Africa Police (SWAP), the continued detention and reported torture of Kassinga detainees, and testimony from Ida Jimmy, a SWAPO political prisoner. The issue also details major political trials in South Africa, including those of Oscar Mpetha, Guy Berger, Devandiren Pillay, and various students and unionists. There are detailed accounts of new bannings, forced removals under the Group Areas Act, school repression, press censorship, and a complete list of detentions and releases under apartheid security laws.

This issue of FOCUS reports on increased aggression by the South African apartheid regime against neighboring Southern African countries, including Zambia, Botswana, Mozambique, Angola, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, and Swaziland, following threats from the South African State Security Council. It details incidents of cross-border raids, military build-ups, and political developments in the region during late 1985 and early 1986. The publication includes updates on the activities of the ANC, SWAPO, and South African surrogate forces, as well as responses from affected governments. The issue also contains subscription information and a statement of IDAF's objectives.

This article details a campaign by the South African regime to undermine SWAPO (South West Africa People’s Organization) and associated church groups in Namibia during the mid-1980s. It describes the infiltration of SWAPO by South African spies, the dissemination of propaganda, and the targeting of church organizations such as the Council of Churches in Namibia (CCN). The article references press conferences, confessions by captured agents, and attacks on church property, as well as the international response to these events. It also includes statements from SWAPO leaders and church officials, and discusses the broader context of repression and resistance in Namibia.