Unlawful Organizations Act, 1960/1963-05-02

by enacted by the Parliament of South Africa

Act

To empower the Governor-General, with a view to the safety of the public or the maintenance of public order, by proclamation in the Gazette to declare the Pan Africanist Congress and the African National Congress and certain other organizations to be unlawful organizations, to amend the Riotous Assemblies Act, 1956, and to provide for matters relating to organizations which are unlawful organizations in terms of the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, and for other incidental matters.

[Long title amended by s. 16 of Act No. 37 of 1963.]

---

(English text signed by the Governor-General.)
(Assented to 7th April, 1960.)

---

as amended by

General Law Amendment Act, No. 76 of 1962
General Law Amendment Act, No. 37 of 1963

Be it enacted by the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, the Senate and the House of Assembly of the Union of South Africa, as follows:―

Unlawful organizations.

1. (1) If the Governor-General is satisfied that the safety of the public or the maintenance of public order is seriously threatened or is likely to be seriously threatened in consequence of the activities of the body known as the Pan Africanist Congress or the body known as the African National Congress, he may, without notice to the body concerned, by proclamation in the Gazette declare such body, including all branches, sections or committees thereof, and all local, regional or subsidiary bodies forming part thereof, to be an unlawful organization.

(2) If the Governor-General is satisfied that the safety of the public or the maintenance of public order is seriously threatened or is likely to be seriously threatened in consequence of the activities of any organization which in his opinion has been established for the purpose of carrying on directly or indirectly any of the activities of any body which has in terms of sub-section (1) been declared to be an unlawful organization, or of any organization which in his opinion directly or indirectly carries on or proposes to carry on any of the said or any like activities, he may, without notice to the organization concerned, by proclamation in the Gazette declare such organization to be an unlawful organization.

(3) (a) The State President may by proclamation in the Gazette declare that any body, organization, group or association of persons, institution, society or movement described or known by a name specified in the proclamation, which in his opinion is in existence or was in existence at any time after the seventh day of April, 1960—

(i)

is in fact a body or organization mentioned in the proclamation which in terms of a proclamation under sub-section (1) or (2) or in terms of the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950 (Act No. 44 of 1950), is an unlawful organization;

(ii)

was in fact at all times subsequent to a date specified in the proclamation, not being earlier than the eighth day of April, 1960, a body or organization so mentioned which in terms of a proclamation under sub-section (1) or (2) or in terms of the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, is an unlawful organization,

and thereupon the said body, organization, group or association of persons, institution, society or movement shall in any criminal proceedings be deemed to exist or, as the case may be, to have existed at all such times and to be or, as the case may be, to have been at all such times the said unlawful organization.

(b) In any criminal proceedings any act or omission proved with reference to any body, organization, group or association of persons, institution, society or movement corresponding to the description or known by a name corresponding to the name of a body, organization, group or association of persons, institution, society or movement in respect of which a proclamation has been issued under this sub-section, shall be deemed to have been proved with reference to the unlawful organization referred to in the proclamation.

(c) Whenever in any proclamation under this sub-section a date is specified in terms of sub-paragraph (ii) of paragraph (a), any person who at any time during the period between the date so specified and the date of publication of such proclamation was an office-bearer, officer or member of any body, organization, group or association of persons, institution, society or movement corresponding to the description or known by a name corresponding to the name of any body, organization, group or association of persons, institution, society or movement in respect of which the proclamation has been issued, shall, for the purposes of any criminal proceedings, be deemed to have become an office-bearer, officer or member of the unlawful organization referred to in the proclamation, on the day immediately following upon the date so specified.

(d) No court shall have jurisdiction to pronounce upon the validity of any proclamation issued under this sub-section.

[Sub-s. (3) substituted by s. 14 (a) of Act No. 37 of 1963.]

(4) The Governor-General may withdraw any proclamation under sub-section (1), (2) or (3) by like proclamation in the Gazette.

[Sub-s. (4) amended by s. 14 (b) of Act No. 37 of 1963.]

Application of Act 44 of 1950 in respect of unlawful organizations.

2. The provisions of section one, sub-section (3) of section two, sections three to five ter, inclusive, and sections seven to fifteen inclusive, of the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, except sub-section (10) of section four, section five bis, paragraph (b) of sub-section (1) and sub-section (2) of section seven, and sections eight, eight bis, nine, ten and fourteen, shall in so far as they are appropriate and can be applied, mutatis mutandis apply with reference to any organization which in terms of a proclamation under sub-section (1) or (2) of section one of this Act is an unlawful organization, and for that purpose—

(a)

any reference in the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, to any organization which has in terms of sub-section (2) of section two of that Act been declared to be an unlawful organization, shall be construed as a reference to an organization which has been declared to be an unlawful organization under sub-section (1) or (2) of section one of this Act;

(b)

any reference in the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, to the date of commencement of that Act, shall be construed as a reference to the date of commencement of this Act;

(c)

any reference in the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, to the date on which any organization becomes an unlawful organization in terms of a proclamation under sub-section (2) of section two of that Act, shall be construed as a reference to the date on which an organization becomes an unlawful organization in terms of a proclamation under sub-section (1) or (2) of section one of this Act;

(d)

any reference in the Suppression of Communism Act 1950, to the objects of communism, shall be construed as a reference to the objects of an organization which is an unlawful organization in terms of a proclamation under sub-section (1) or (2) of section one of this Act or to objects similar to the objects of any such organization; and

[Para. (d) amended by s. 15 of Act No. 37 of 1963.]

(e)

the reference in sub-section (3) of section two of the Suppression of Communism Act, 1950, to paragraph (b), (c), (d) or (e) of sub-section (2) of section two of that Act, shall be construed as a reference to section one of this Act.

[S. 2 amended by s. 20 of Act No. 76 of 1962.]

Reports to Parliament.

3. The Minister shall lay copies of any proclamation issued under section one on the Tables of both Houses of Parliament within fourteen days after the publication thereof, if Parliament is then in session, or, if Parliament is not then in session, within fourteen days after the commencement of its first ensuing session.

Amendment of section 15 of Act 17 of 1956.

4. (1) Section fifteen of the Riotous Assemblies Act, 1956, is hereby amended by the substitution for all the words following the word “liable” of the words “to the penalties prescribed in section two of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1953 (Act No. 8 of 1953)”.

(2) Sub-section (1) shall be deemed to have come into operation on the twenty-eighth day of March, 1960.

Application to South-West Africa.

5. This Act shall apply also in the territory of South-West Africa.

Short title.

6. This Act shall be called the Unlawful Organizations Act, 1960.