The second frameup trial of Mark Curtis

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Mark Curtis was sentenced to 25 years in a Iowa prison as a result of a September 1988 conviction for rape and burglary. There was no physical evidence linking Curtis to the charges. His conviction primarily rested on the testimony of the arresting police officer, who had previously been reprimanded by his own superiors for lying.

As an active unionist and member of the Socialist Workers Party, Curtis' name appears in FBI files which have now been made public. He was also active in protesting immigration raids at the Swift meatpacking plant where he worked.

In fact, it was only several hours after Curtis participated in a meeting to protest the abduction of several of his co-workers by the Immigration and Naturalization Service that he was severely beaten and arrested by police officers who called him that "Mexican-lover, just like you love those coloreds."

Since his arrest, a committee formed to gather support and funds to wage an extensive defense campaign in its uphill battle to free Curtis. The defense committee has begun the appeal process by citing lack of court evidence, the exclusion of important evidence, and numerous court irregularities.

Yet, on April 24 the Iowa Court of Appeals refused to overturn his conviction. The defense committee will now appeal directly to the Iowa Supreme Court. If that loses, Curtis has the right to appeal to the federal courts.

In addition to the appeal process, Curtis supporters have launched an aggressive international effort exposing the political motives of the frame-up. Money and endorsements have been obtained to sustain the defense committee's legal and publicity costs. Curtis has also filed a lawsuit against the police officers who beat him.

Meanwhile Curtis himself has not remained quiet in prison. He became an active member of the Martin Luther King Jr. Committee discussion group in prison. And he regularly protested efforts to isolate him from other prisoners and to deprive him of political reading material deemed "improper" by the warden.

In the face of a stubborn group of ers and an outspoken prisoner, the ties were clearly worried that their lies would unravel. This explains series of attacks against Curtis committee.

Defense Committee targeted

A civil lawsuit has been filed against Curtis by Denise and Keith Morris, parents of Demetria Morris, the alleged rape victim. The trial date is July 9. The Morris' are seeking punitive damages for the "pain and suffering" they say Curtis inflicted on their daughter. The suit also asks the court to assign to them "any monies" received by Curtis "as the result of commercialization of his acts."

This last reference is to the Curtis Defense supportauthoriweb of the new and his Committee, which has now become a target, along with Mark. Stuart Pepper, attorney for the Morrises, indicated that he intends to collect any fines imposed by the court from Curtis and his wife, Kate Kaku, as well as John Studer, executive director of the Curtis Defense Committee. Studer has already been threatened with an inspection of his financial records.

Studer told Socialist Action that "although the first trial of Curtis resulted in a conviction, it was not politically convincing enough for the prosecution. People walk away from any objective examination of the case and say 'it's a frame-up.' They hope to use the next trial to give more credence to the first conviction, to try to break Mark by imposing a huge financial burden on him, and to launch a new attack on the defense committee. This July 9 trial is really the second frame-up trial of Mark Curtis."

"These are deadly serious threats to Curtis, to the defense committee, and to all those organizations who may need to defend themselves against future government attacks," explained Studer.

In conjunction with the legal harassment of the committee, Curtis was recently transfered on one day's notice to Fort Madison, a smaller prison than Anamosa, where he had been previously held. Studer believes it was "partly because the prison authorities wanted SOCIALIST A and to get a problem out of their hair."

Supporters are encouraged to write to Mark at his new address: Mark Curtis #805338, Box 316 JBC Dorm, Fort Madison, Iowa, 52627. The sender's full name and address must be on the upper left hand of the envelope, with the name signed in full at the end of the letter. Greeting cards are permitted, as are photos, but not larger than 8 1/2" x 11".

Contributions and support to the Defense Committee can be arranged by contacting them at (515) 246-1695 or writing to: PO Box 1048, Des Moines, Iowa 50311. Taxdeductible contributions should be made out to Political Rights Defense Fund, Inc.

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CTION JUNE 1990 19

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Four months ago Nelson Mandela was freed, yet the apartheid regime-despite some token reforms—-remains essentially intact.

Mandela has demanded that in order for genuine negotiations to take place, all political prisoners must be freed, the state of emergency must be lifted, and the repressive apartheid laws must be abrogated. None of this has occurred.

On the contrary, "liberal" Prime Minister F.W. de Klerk has sent in the police to quash anti-apartheid demonstrations in the townships and Bantustans, and to put down the strikes of hospital workers and rail workers. Since Feb. 1, over 300 anti-apartheid acSocialist Action WORKERS of enormous financial resources is a source of massive power: the power to decide whether to build houses or casinos, to invest money locally or overseas, to pay a living wage or allow workers to die of starvation.

Unless the workers, who produced this wealth, take control of these economic resources, the people will never be free!

What is apartheid?

What does it mean that the creators of apartheid suddenly declare that they are against it?

Apartheid does not only mean laws such as the Group Areas Act, the Mixed

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