MASSACRE AT SHARPEVILLE

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29380, 6 December 1960, Page 10

MASSACRE AT SHARPEVILLE

‘Police Must Bear Responsibility’ (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright! LONDON, December 4. The Anglican Bishop of Johannesburg (Dr. Ambrose Reeves) said yesterday that the South African police must bear full responsibility for the shooting at Sharpeville, near Johannesburg, last March when 67 Africans were killed, and 186 injured. Dr. Reeves, in a book entitled “Shooting at Sharpeville,” added that the police made no effort to move on the crowd gathering around the Sharpeville police station on that day. He alleged that police officers did not warn the crowd that police would open fire if it did not move, and that no attempt was made to use less drastic force than firearms. Dr. Reeves said the crowd which had gone to protest about reference passes and not to fight, was not armed and “was neither threatening nor dangerous.” A double duty was laid upon church people within the Commonwealth to see that the Commonwealth made plain its own attitude towards all racial discrimination, and also to encourage efforts to hold the Commonwealth together. “In practical terms, this would mean refusing to expel South Africa from the Commonwealth,” Dr. Reeves added. “Yet, at the same time, it would be made plain to the South African Government that South Africa must begin at once to change its racial policies if it wants to continue membership.” Speaking of countries attaining independence in Africa, Bishop Reeves warned of tlje error of assuming that throughout the continent, Africans ought to replace colonial rule with a replica of the British form erf government. It might well be that in some territories the next stage after colonial rule would have to be “some form of benevolent autocracy,” he said. To suggest that Africans were

incapable of achieving a society in which human freedom was highly prized would be doing them a grave injustice.