The Native
Law Amendment Act, which has lately gone through Parliament,
is one of the worst laws against black persons ever made in South
Africa - and South Africa has always had a bad name for bad behaviour
to persons who are not white.18 It is not so much that the new
Act puts forward any new idea for keeping the Bantu down. The things
it puts forward have been seen in our country for a long time.

But though there have
been bad laws there has at all times been something different
about them in different parts of the country.
There was one sort of law in the Transvaal, another in the Orange "Free" State,
another in Natal, and so on. The Cape has generally been free from
some of the worst laws against the black man. In addition, even
in places like Johannesburg, there were sometimes holes in the
laws - places where a black man might by a happy chance get through.

Now all that is changed. There is one system of law throughout
the country for all Bantu men and women.
Of special interest is the new law giving power to the authorities
to send back to the country-side any Bantu living in towns who
are "unnecessary" from the point ofview of the white
business men and others who make use of black workers. The Act
makes it clear that there is to be no place in the towns for any
black person who is not working for some white man. The white rulers
of this country have no desire to see any Bantu who are not dependent
for their living on the whites. The desire of the government is
to put a stop to any growth of Bantu business or trade, however
small. The Bantu were stopped by the Colour Bar Act (1926) from
becoming expert workers. Now an attempt is being made to put a
stop to them becoming business men or private traders. They have
to be servants of the white man, doing the rough work for little
payment - "sons of Ham" in fact!

That, at any rate, is the desire of the government. Are the eight
million black and Coloured persons in this country going to put
up with this?

We say "eight million" because it is not only the Bantu
who are being attacked. The rights of the Coloured and the Indians
in addition are being smashed by new colour bar laws. The Marketing
Act gives rights to white farmers and traders only. It is a bad
blow to the Indian and Native banana and sugar farmers in Natal.
A new law is being made to put a stop to chances for Indians in
the Transvaal. Indians are at present not able to have property
in land in that part of the country. Government has a fear that
some of the Indian business men may get married to women who are
whites or Malays, in which event it would be possible for the wife
to have property in her name.

Another law, which is still under discussion in Parliament, has
the purpose of making it a crime for a white girl to do work in
an Indian business. Another has the purpose of putting a stop to
all "mixed marriages."
We hear that the Cape Provincial Council is thinking of making
a law which will put a stop to all who are not white riding in
trams and buses together with the white people and to drive the
Coloured people out ofthe towns into special locations. In Johannesburg
the authorities have chased out all the Coloured persons who were
living among the white people in town.

Unity of all the black people in this country is the ONLY remedy
which will help us. We have to organise ourselves and fight for
our rights if we desire to be free.