Children: The PR Pawns Of Terrorism
primary_youtube_id: dMu_8vnqpRA
Extract 2
Extract 3
1980s
0:40:00
South Africa
American Christian missionary Rick Schmidt presents two films, both suggesting that the African National Congress (ANC) is a “marxist terrorist” group and a “duplicitous, communist-inspired corrupter of Black youth” in South Africa.
Physical formats available:
Mini DV,
Betacam SP,
VHS
Digital formats available:
MPEG-4 AVC
Audio & visual:
Sound,
Color
Amongst shocking and graphic scenes of extrajudicial killing is footage of anti-apartheid activist and patron of the United Democratic Front (UDF) Rev. Alan Boesak; anti-apartheid and human rights activist Desmond Tutu; prime minister of South Africa and apartheid advocate P.W. Botha; former South African police major and convicted spy Craig Williamson, and General Secretary: NUM (and later President of South Africa) - Mr Cyril Ramaphosa.
Collection
South African Propaganda
(38)
During the apartheid era, the South African Information Service launched a campaign of propaganda and disinformation aimed at the Western powers, which it considered its natural allies against what it called the “Communist onslaught” to take over South Africa.
This campaign was both covert and overt, and ranged from what appeared to be straightforward tourist films to savage attacks on the ANC through a source apparently connected to the South African Information Service. The South African government spent millions of dollars to win support, with most of this effort being directed at the USA, where it had many influential sympathisers of the apartheid regime.
These VHS tapes represent an extremely rare collection of propaganda materials produced by the Information Service.