David Hermanus Olivier, leader of the South African Nazi Grey Shirts and editor of their central organ, Der Rapport, who together with his colleagues, Johannes von Moltke and Harry Victor Inch, has been on trial at Grahamstown for having defamed the Jewish people by the publication of libelous statements against them, today published an official statement containing his resignation from the Grey Shirts.
This strengthened indications that a favorable verdict would be handed down next week in favor of the Reverend A. Levy, who brought the action against the South African Nazis.
During the progress of the trial Inch asked the court for permission to withdraw from the trial, admitting that he had been making speeches on the basis of forged documents. The court refused, saying withdrawal was impossible.
The Reverend Levy sued the defendants when they published an alleged document containing details of a Jewish plot to seize the rule of the world similar to the notorious “Protocols of the Elders of Zion.” The Nazis announced proudly that this document and others had been stolen from the Port Elizabeth synagogue of which Reverend Levy is the spiritual leader. He denounced the documents as an impudent forgery and immediately instituted suit. The trial took place before Judge-President Sir Thomas Graham and Justice Gutche.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
