Interim Report - Report No 26, 1957

A. A. The complainants' allegations

1. 104. The complaint of the South African Congress of Trade Unions is contained in three communications dated 7 December and 29 December 1956 and 23 January 1957. The complaining organisation alleges that 156 persons have been arrested and charged with treason, including nine of the principal officials of the organisation, whose names are given. A number of members of the organisation are also named as having been similarly arrested and charged. Although the officials and members have been allowed bail, it is alleged that this is on condition that they do not attend any gatherings and that they report weekly to the police. This means, according to the complainant, that the officials, who include the President, Vice-President and General Secretary of the complaining organisation and members of its executive committee and the secretaries of some of its branches, may not address workers, or attend trade union meetings ; or industrial council meetings, etc. Further, it is alleged, the General Secretary and the President of the complaining organisation have been banned by notice under the Suppression of Communism Act, 1956, as amended, from attending any gatherings for five years and, by notice under the Riotous Assemblies Act, 1956, have been prohibited for the same period from leaving Johannesburg. Finally, it is alleged, the Crown Prosecutor, in the treason trials, is citing statements by union officials and quotations from documents out of their context so as to alter their meaning. Documents are forwarded by the complainant in support of this allegation.
   • ANALYSIS OF THE REPLY
2. 105. The communications constituting the complaint were transmitted by the Director-General to the Government of the Union of South Africa by a letter dated 8 February 1957.
3. 106. In a letter dated 27 March 1957, the Government draws attention to the fact that the whole case is sub judice. The Government adds that the legislation in terms of which the accused are charged is applicable to all citizens, and not just trade unionists, of whom there are only 21 among the total of 156 persons who have been charged. Only nine of these, concluded the Government, appear to be connected with bodies affiliated to the complaining organisation.

B. B. The Committee's conclusions

1. 107. The essence of the case is that a number of trade union officials and members, including some of the principal officials of the complaining organisation, are alleged to have been arrested on charges of treason and then to have been released on bail but subjected to such restrictions as seriously to interfere with their trade union activities. The trials of the persons concerned are pending before the courts.
2. 108. In a number of previous cases, the Committee has followed the principle that it will not proceed to examine matters which are the subject of pending judicial proceedings, provided that these proceedings are attended by proper guarantees of due process of law.
3. 109. The Committee has followed this principle because, as it stated in Case No. 69 relating to France, "the pending judicial decision may make available to it valuable elements of information ". In Case No. 97 relating to India, in which one important aspect of the case was the subject of pending proceedings, the Committee took the view that " as these proceedings were likely to provide information of assistance to it " in appreciating whether or not the allegations were well founded, it should adjourn its examination until the results of the proceedings were known. The same views have influenced the Committee in its adjournment of certain of the cases still before it.
4. 110. In all of these cases, the Committee had made it clear that it only postponed its examination pending the outcome of the judicial proceedings, after having satisfied itself that the proceedings in question appeared to be attended by all the guarantees afforded by due process of law, the importance of such due process being a principle which the Committee has consistently emphasised in a very considerable number of other cases also. The Committee, moreover, has emphasised that the guarantees afforded by due process of law should include safeguards against the retroactive application of any criminal or penal law.