'Calling for divestment is punishable by life in prison'

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(NUM) a special meeting Congress of South African Trade Unions The following is an interview with Akin Odulate, Special Topics Representative of the African Students Association (ASA) of the University of Southern California (USC). Odulate is 22 years old, a Nigerian, and a student at USC majoring in Critical Studies in the Cinema School.

The ASA membership consists of students from at least 11 African countries and Black Americans. They also work within the Students Against Apartheid coalition at USC. This interview was conducted on May 19, 1988, by Kathleen O'Nan for Socialist Action.

Socialist Action: Tell me about the African Students Association here at USC and what types of activities it has sponsored in the past.

Akin Odulate: The African Association was founded in 1904 by the African students on campus at that time. Its focus then was more on a community level rather than a campus level. It was a lot more social than anything else.

S.A.: Has the student student movement throughout the United States in opposition to South African apartheid contributed to the change in the ASA's activities?

Odulate: Yes, I think it has. It has brought it more to the front of everyday life. There are people taking active meaCO:

National Union of Mineworkers (COSATU) convened in May. sures against this. When I first joined, focus for me was a moral one.

S.A.: How is the issue of South Africa taken up among students?

Odulate: Students are concerned specifically about this university's investments in South Africa. That is the most direct issue facing us on this campus.

S.A.: How heavily invested is the university in South Africa?

Odulate: Between $26 and $30 million. So most of the activities that we are undertaking are specifically to call for divestment in South Africa. The university formed a committee about two years ago to look into divestment. So far, the committee has met only once.

S.A.: I've heard that the South African government has shown its face on campus. Is this true?

Odulate: Yes. We got information before we had our last demonstration that the South African consulate was sending out observers to get pictures of any South Africans involved, so we ordered all South African students not to turn up.

S.A.: What are the laws of South Africa regarding South African students who discuss apartheid while they're abroad?

Odulate: Basically, you don't discuss internal policies of South Africa. South CLABO delegates at of the African students are not supposed to get involved. Calling for divestment is punishable by life in prison.

I know of one incident where Black South African students in this country have been approached by South African secret police. So for a South African student, it's a very, very serious decision to make whether or not you're going to get active. A lot of them—and I don't blame them— would rather just stick to their books and do what they can.

S.A.: But more and more are becoming involved now. What impels them to do this now, as opposed to two years ago?

Odulate: The growing support that they're getting.

S.A.: What plans does the ASA have here for the future?

Odulate: Basically, we want to make sure the issue of South Africa is on everyone's mind and also to give the Africans on campus a better image. For instance, one professor said that Africans had a lot of AIDS because they were promiscuous.

When people feel that there will be no retribution for what they say about Africa, they feel they can take a free season on Africa and Africans. We took it up with this professor and wrote him a pretty strong letter and we received a letter of apology.

S.A.: In the past few months, there have been some very successful demonstrations on the campus by Palestinian and other Arab students. Are these the types of demonstrations the ASA would support?

Odulate: Oh, yes. In fact, we've been working on a joint forum with the Palestinians. For the ASA, these are moral issues. We feel you come to a university to get prepared for life. You should be learning to decide what is right and what is wrong in life.

For apartheid to be going on and for the university to be actively investing in such a country-it's not as if they couldn't invest their money somewhere else and make just as much, if not more money. They could do that. But they refuse to do it.

They're telling us that they don't give a damn. But what they don't realize is that some day these African students are going to go back to their countries and become leaders of those countries in the future. And the impressions they take back now will be very important to the way America stands with Africa in the future.

S.A.: In the time that you've been in the United States, which has been less than a year, you have acquired certain impressions about the country. What is your impression about the American working class?

Odulate: My family was always very pro-American. But since I've been here, my illusions have been shattered. I see that the American government stands for one thing, and the American people stand for another thing. What America says and what America does are two different things.

The following is the press statement by the National Council of Trade Unions (NACTU) on the May 2-3 meeting with the ANC.

A five-person delegation of NACTU, led by President James Mndawani, met with the delegation of national executive committee members of the ANC, led by Secretary General Alfred Nzo.

The meeting took place on the eve of the International Labor Organization conference against apartheid. Following an exposition of NACTU's formation, its principles and policies, the ANC explained their assessment of several urgent issues facing the oppressed and exploited in South Africa.

The meeting then discussed the urgent need for unity in action among all the mass democratic organizations operating inside South Africa. In exploring the basis of unity it was agreed that:

1) The Freedom Charter is not the prerequisite for unity.

2) All the legitimate organizations, of whatever persuasion, have a direct and meaningful role in the national liberation struggle.

3) Such a role has to evolve on a democratic and principled basis.

4) Unity within the opposition forces,

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Santu Mofokeng/Impact Visuals General strike