RHODESIAN FEDERATION Kaunda Weeps In Telling Of Deaths

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29802, 19 April 1962, Page 13

RHODESIAN FEDERATION Kaunda Weeps In Telling Of Deaths

Vi NEW YORK, April 18. An African nationalist leader broke down and wept in the United Nations yesterday as he told of the plight of Africans in the Rhodesia-Nyasaland Federation. Mr Kenneth Kaunda, president of the Northern Rhodesia’s United National Independence Party, told the United Nations Committee on Colonialism that the Northern Rhodesian Government had failed to explain to Africans why they had to move from the giant Kariba Dam site. “As usual,” he said, “they were fired on.”

Eight persons had been killed on the spot. A further 70 to 80 Africans had died of a “mysterious disease” in the area to which they were transferred from Gwembe. When animals were trapped by the rising waters of the dam. thousands of pounds were raised by people who professed to be civilised and Christian. “It was not to save these African people, but to save wild animals,” he said. At this point, Mr Kaunda broke down. After a pause,

he told the committee: “It has been a sad experience.”

Mr Kaunda told the 17nation committee that Africans would never accept Sir Roy Welensky’s Federation programme. He charged discrimination against Africans in health, education, civil rights and political affairs. Mr Kaunda said that the social and political system in the British protectorate was “wrong, stupid and unrealistic.” “Scraping the pennies and sixpences of poor people together, we sent delegation after delegation to Britainpolitical leaders, labour leaders and chiefs—to tell the British Government that Federation was not in our interests, that we could not accept it in any form,” he said. “However, our masters listened to the voice of power, instead of the voice of reason.” Mr Kaunda said that "high-

sounding declarations have misled the whole world into believing Sir Roy Welensky was sincere in speaking of a so-called partnership between the races.” But in spite of this professed partnership. Africans in Northern Rhodesia lived in the lowest-privileged of social “water-tight compartments,” he declared. The nationalist leader said there were separate European and African hospitals. Instances had occurred where ambulances from European hospitals had arrived at a scene of an accident, only to turn back empty when it was discovered the victim was African. Where teachers at African schools had big classes, he said, the country commonly spent thousands of pounds s year on paying one schoolmaster to teach a single subject to a group of as little as four Europeans. The committee adjourned until today.