South African Jews Reaffirm Loyalty of Community to Government

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies today issued a statement here reaffirming the loyalty and patriotism of the Jewish community in this country and disclaiming responsibility for recent acts by individual Jews charged with subversive activities in opposition to the Government’s apartheid policy.

The Board’s statement was in response to questions rased by Dagbreek, the country’s largest Afrikaans newspaper, over the recent arrest of Arthur Goldreich, a prominent artist and architect, and Harold Wolpe, an attorney, who were detained by police along with a number of other whites and non-whites charged with heading an anti-apartheid subversive group.

“The tacts demonstrate overwhelmingly, ” the Board declared, “that the Jewish community of South Africa is an established, loyal and patriotic section of the population. The actions of individuals of any section are their own responsibility and no section of the community can or should be asked to accept responsibility. If individuals transgress the law, they expose themselves to the penalty of the law. The Jewish community condemns the breaking of the law, in whatever section of the population it might occur,” the statement concluded.