Moses Mayekiso must be freed!

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Moses Mayekiso, a leading South African trade unionist, is on trial for his life. He and four others have been charged with high treason and sedition-charges that could carry the death penalty.

Moses Mayekiso is general secretary of one of the largest Black unions in South Africa, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA). He is also an executive board member of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU).

In 1978, Mayekiso joined the fledgling Metal And Allied Workers Union (MAWU) while working at the Toyota car plant. He soon became a key figure in building MAWU into one of the strongest and most democratic unions in South Africa.

By the end of 1985, MAWU became one of the founding unions of COSATU, South Africa's largest union federation. Mayekiso served on the committees which drew up the COSATU constitution and planned its inaugural congress.

The charges against Mayekiso stem from his political work in Alexandra Township, the community in which he lived with his wife Kola, also a MAWU organizer, and their seven children.

The residents of "Alex" rose up in the "Six Day War" in February 1986, expelling police and government administrators and taking over the running of the township. Mayekiso was elected chairman of the grassroots Alexandra Action Committee.

When the state of emergency was declared on June 12, 1986, Mayekiso was meeting with Swedish metalworkers in Stockholm. In a transparent attempt to force him into exile, the Pretoria regime refused to renew his passport, due to expire June 14.

Two weeks later, on June 28, Mayekiso went home and was arrested along with Paul Tshabalala, Richard Mdakane, Obed Dapela, and Mzwanle Myekiso (Moses' younger brother). He was held without charge until the end of 1986 and then charged with "high treason."

When Mayekiso appeared in court in January 1987, there was a picket of 200 unionists, including COSATU General Secretary Jay Naidoo and National Union of Mineworkers leader Cyril Ramaphosa.

Last month, the trial went into recess until February 1988. The defendants will remain in jail until that time.

It is the task of anti-apartheid forces throughout the world to wage an unrelenting campaign to save Moses Mayekiso, his fellow defendants, and all the other union leaders who are currently rotting in South Africa's jails.

The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) has issued a call which states: "We call for the international trade-union community to build a campaign for Mayekiso's release. In this regard, the union welcomes all forms of independent, responsible support initiatives in the international arena and hopes for the maximum possible cooperation between groups in seeking to achieve this end."

This call must be heeded. In the United commissioned an independent panel of 10 prominent jurists to monitor the court proceedings when the trial resumes.

Letters demanding that the charges against Mayekiso and the other defendants Despite inclement weather, over 150 students rallied at the University of Cincinnati on Nov. 24 to demand divestment of all university funds with firms that do business with South Africa. On the same day, over 2000 signatures demanding divestment were presented to a meeting of the university's Board of Trustees.

The Anti-Intervention Coalition (AIC), which called the rally, estimates that the university has $23 million invested in South Africa-oriented companies. Diverse forces have rallied behind the coalition's slogan, "U.C.

Divest Now!"

The rally was co-sponsored by the