Bombs injure 14 in Namibia on eve of disputed polls

Press, 4 December 1978, Page 9

Bombs injure 14 in Namibia on eve of disputed polls

NZPA-Reuter Windhoek Two bombs exploded and wounded 14 shoppers on Saturday in Windhoek, long a relatively safe haven in Namibia’s small-scale guerrilla war. The police have issued a warning that more violence could occur leading up to this week’s disputed elections.

One man was taken to: hospital with serious injuries from one bombing, and several women were 1 treated for deep cuts in their legs and for other light wounds. A third bomb was defused after being found in a highrise building. The bombings were seen as a warning that black nationalists would keep their promise to disrupt the elections in the South | African-controlled territory, which will begin today, but a spokesman for the South West African Peoples’ Organisation denied that the group’s guerrillas were responsible. Several hundred S . W . A . P . O . supporters i marched down Windhoek’s! mein street on Saturday, dressed in the bright red, blue, and green colours of their party, and waving placards protesting against the elections. South African officials in Windhoek say the election: ef local representatives this

> week will be a preliminary; step towards independence, i South Africa organised the ' vote in defiance of United ‘Nations insistence on a ■ United Nations-supervised : election, though it says it will do its best to hold a United Nations vote later. I S.W.A P.O. has fought a hit-and-run bush war for 12 ; years to wres control of the i territory, also known as : Namibia, from white-ruled ' South Africa. i The black nationalist II group has refused to , participate in this week’s : voting, which observers i believe will be won by the ’ Democratic Turnhalle ! Alliance, the multi-racial, >' pro-South African political party. I The United Nations has i long recognised S.W.A.P.O. ila s the legitimate , representative of the , Namibian people, and has ’ demanded since 1966 that i ; South Africa relinquish : control of the territory. At the United Nations in ; New York, African States ■ i have asked for an urgent ; meeting of the Security i

; Council to resume debate on the Namibia problem. They said they wanted the i discussions to begin not later than today. That is when five days of internal elections are to begin in the South African-ruled territory, t-- create a legislative body that the security council has already called null and void. A spokesman for the United Nations SecretaryGeneral (Dr Kurt Waldheim) said on Saturday that he would report no later than today on his talks last week on the Namibia problem with the South African Foreign Minister (Mr Pik Botha). The spokesman indicated that Dr Waldheim would not wait for the South African Government’s response to a number of questions Mr Botha undertook to refer to his Cabinet colleagues, if this was not received before today. This hard line was interpreted in some circles as confirmation that the talks had gone badly and that the two sides were close to deadlock.