South African Jews Debate Position on Student Demonstrations

Keen discussion is still taking place among South African Jews on the student demonstrations here which were recently checked by police action and which have now been banned from public places by ministerial proclamation. Reform rabbis supported the student protest; Orthodox rabbis were more temperate in their replies to requests for support of the student demonstrations. Last week 152 Jewish students at the University of Cape Town signed a letter to the South African Jewish Times in which they criticized Cape Town rabbis by name for refusing to give them support.

Meanwhile, Johannesburg Chief Rabbi B.M. Casper sent a letter to the Archbishop of Cape Town expressing sympathy over the incident which took place outside St. Georges Cathedral in Cape Town, when police forcibly dispersed the student demonstration there. But, he added “I cannot think that this was anything other than an unfortunate error of judgment and overzealousness on the part of the police involved in that unhappy event.” He upheld the concept of peaceful protest on matters of public importance and said it was the duty of spiritual leaders to urge this on the government.

At the monthly meeting of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies in Johannesburg last week, the chairman, David K. Mann, referred to the controversy over the student protests and said that, without wishing to express any opinion on them, he wanted to make clear that the student protests were not a Jewish issue, but a matter involving students of all denominations. Jewish students and rabbis, indeed, any individuals are entitled to express their views; but it should be remembered that these were personal views on matters of South African national concern which did not constitute a specific Jewish issue, he said.