SPRINGBOK CYBER NEWSLETTER
September 2014 edition
The world is probably currently facing the greatest danger of global military conflict since the end of WWII. There are two areas of confrontation which could quickly escalate into wider conflicts involving all Western powers. The first is the civil war in the Ukraine, and the second is of course the ongoing power-struggle in the tinderbox of the Middle East. These two conflicts need to be handled in very different ways however.
As far as the Ukraine is concerned, it should always be borne in mind that apart from a brief period as a Nazi-puppet state the Ukraine had never been an independent country prior to the break-up of the Soviet Union. It was part of the Tsar’s “All the Russias”, and indeed Kiev was once capital of Russia itself. Ethnically, linguistically and religiously the Slavic Ukrainians are the same people as the Slavic Russians, so all logic therefore confirms that they should form one nation-state, together with their other identical neighbouring state of Belarus.
It should also be remembered that Russia is currently facing exactly the same enemies as the great nation-states of Western Europe are facing, namely expansionist fundamental Islam and interference from the German-dominated EU. The break-up of the other nations of Europe has for long been part of the German-EU plan, firstly in the east as happened in not only Russia but also in Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia, but now increasingly in the West, as current most worrying attempts to separate Scotland from the centuries-old United Kingdom illustrates. Russia is therefore our friend, and if re-unification with the Ukraine can come about then it is going to make it far more difficult for the German-EU to succeed in their plans to carve-up the great nation-states of Western Europe such as Britain and Belgium etc.. Western governments should therefore support the so-called “rebels” in the Ukraine who wish to be re-united with mother Russia, and not the fascist-influenced Kiev Government.
The fault for the current dangerous situation in the Middle East can probably be traced back to the aftermath of the First Gulf War in 1991, when after liberating Kuwait the West simply withdrew, rather than continuing the military offensive to Baghdad in order to remove the tyrant Saddam Hussein and his detestable Ba’athist regime. If this had been done then there would not have been any subsequent suppression of the Shi’ite Iraqis and Kurds, so that internal conflict in the post-Saddam Hussein Iraq would probably never have taken place; there would have been no 9/11, and in all probability no 7/7, Bali or Madrid terrorist atrocities either; there would have been no necessity for a Second Gulf War, and ISIS/ISIL would thereby not have been given the breeding-ground to emerge. There is no point in going back over history however. All we should be concerned about is the future.
We laid out our opinions about the current crisis in Syria and Iraq in the June edition of the SCN, and see no reason to change these opinions now. In a nutshell, the West should encourage a rapprochement between the Assad Government and the Syrian National Council, and then to intervene with them, the Kurdish Peshmerga and whatever form of new Iraqi government emerges in order to crush ISIS/ISIL ruthlessly – just as ruthlessly as the Israelis have attacked ISIS/ISIL’s fellow-Islamic terrorists Hamas in Gaza. After that, however, the West must not make the same mistake as was made in the early 1990s and the early 2010s and to withdraw their forces far too early – indeed we would advocate that a Western presence should be maintained in this most volatile region for all time.
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SPRINGBOK CLUB NEWS
The Springbok Club staged a trip to the National Portrait Gallery in London last month, where those attending were able to view a special exhibition of pictures of personalities connected to World War One, a well as viewing pictures of leading figures from the Anglo-Boer War and the Imperial era in general. After concluding the visit to the National Portrait Gallery the Springbok Club party adjourned to the near-by Salisbury pub (named after the 3rd Marquis of Salisbury, after whom Salisbury, the capital of Rhodesia, was named), for a convivial ending to the day.
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The Springbok Club has been most honoured to be invited to participate in this year's "Raising of the Flag" ceremony in Norfolk. This annual event has been staged for over 30 years in order to mark the anniversary of the founding of Rhodesia in September 1890, and consists of speeches about Rhodesia, a short religious ceremony, music from a brass band, and an actual re-enactment of the raising of the Union Flag at Salisbury in 1890, which will be followed by the singing of the Rhodesian National Anthem and the firing of a 21-gun salute. After the ceremony tea and light refreshments will be served.
The official invitation to this event reads as follows :-
“This year‘s ‘Raising of the Flag’ Memorial Gathering, celebrating the day that Southern Rhodesia, ‘The Jewel of the Crown’, was founded, will be held on Sunday the 14th September at 2.30 pm [14.30 hs] at Southrepps Hall, Norfolk, NR11 8TG.”
Southrepps Hall is situated just outside the village of Southrepps, to the east of the A149 halfway between North Walsham and Cromer. The nearest railway station is Gunton, which is only a short taxi-journey away.
We hope that as many members and supporters of the Springbok Club as possible will be able to attend this most uplifting event, especially all those living in East Anglia. Although not essential, it would be most helpful for those organising this ceremony if all those wishing to attend could e-mail us in advance to confirm their intentions.
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In October the Springbok Club will be staging a meeting which will be addressed by a leading member of the organization who has recently returned from a professional contract in the “new” South Africa, who will tell something about the true conditions currently prevailing there. More precise details will be given in next month’s SCN.
In November the Springbok Club plans to stage its annual UDI Day celebration buffet, at which there will be a guest speaker with strong Rhodesian connections.
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The Kent Branch of the Springbok Club will be organising a pub-gathering in Canterbury, and a trip to see some of the historical sites of the Medway Towns towards the end of the year. Fuller details will be given in future editions of the SCN.
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SWINTON CIRCLE NEWS
Unfortunately, due to a misunderstanding about the dates when the anticipated guest speaker was next planning to be in the UK, and as it alas proved impossible to obtain a replacement guest speaker at such short notice, the Swinton Circle’s planned August meeting had to be cancelled at the last minute. The guest speaker in question (a former Conservative MP) will still be addressing a Swinton Circle however, probably in December.
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The Swinton Circle will be giving its full support to New Britain’s big “Keep the United Kingdom United” rally in London later this month, the full details of which are given in the New Britain News section below.
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In October the Swinton Circle will be holding its 2014 AGM, after which an interesting guest speaker will give a short keynote talk, and in November the Swinton Circle will welcome a sitting MP as guest speaker.
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Membership fees and donations to the Swinton Circle can be made via PayPal on the organisation’s web-site home page at www.swintoncircle.co.uk - simply 'click' on the line "PayPal = the safer, easier way to pay online" at the bottom of the home page; if the error message "This content cannot be displayed in a Frame" appears then simply 'click' on the line "Open this Content in a New Window".
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NEW BRITAIN NEWS
Details regarding New Britain’s long-awaited “Keep the United Kingdom United” rally have now been finalized, and are as follows :-
Date : Saturday 13th September 2014
Assembly point : Paternoster Square, next to St.Paul’s Cathedral
Assembly time : Between 11.30 hrs and 12.00 noon
At approximately 12.00 hrs the procession will march off through the streets of the City of London to St.Sepulchre’s Church where the rally will take place, which will feature bagpipes, Scottish dancers and speeches by two prominent supporters of the Better Together campaign.
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LATEST MESSAGE FROM THE SANWILD WILDLIFE SANCTUARY
We have recently received the following message from the SanWild Wildlife Sanctuary :-
“Dear SanWild friends and donors,
“All is well at SanWild as a year reaches its halfway mark. On our side we are working very hard to continue to help as many wild animals in need as we possibly can. The challenges remain huge and our story continues to play out as a David versus Goliath situation. Facing overwhelming odds stacked not only against us but also against the wild animals we care for so deeply. Odds brought on by a modern world where mankind so easily choose to forget the many challenges and dangers that face wild animals across the planet.
“We however do stand proud of what we have achieved with your help and ongoing support. You more than anyone know that each and every animal at SanWild has a story to tell. A story of danger, abuse, and an eventual rescue and safety, and for the role you played in this we will be forever in your debt!
“We have come to know that when it really gets difficult for us to continue to provide the ongoing love and support our rescued animals need we can come to you and you will help us. Please note that we do not abuse the support and love you have given to us over the years and if and when we ask for financial support we are really in desperate need of this help. As no sponsorship has yet been secured for our large predators in particular we need once again now to ask for your financial help.”
To contact SanWild in this regard please visit their web-site at : www.sanwild.org
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SOUTH AFRICAN RUGBY SIDES AT SARACENS
We have recently been contacted by Saracens RFC who have told us about two upcoming matches which they will be playing against South African opposition. The details are as follows :-
1) Sunday 9th of November 2014 against Western Province Stormers
2) Saturday 31st of January 2015. against Northern Transvaal Blue Bulls
Saracens are offering the Springbok Club £25.00 tickets for these matches at only £20.00 – though we must obtain parties of at least 10 people in order to take advantage of these offers. In order to plan arrangements for these games we really need to know numbers as soon as possible, so if you are interested in attending please contact us accordingly at: springbk@netcomuk.co.uk
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SEARCH SERVICES FOR THOSE SEEKING LOST RELATIVES
Find any South African, even those who have emigrated. We also search Botswana, Namibia and ex-Rhodesia/Zimbabwe.
Please use the search request form at :-
http://www.bellemodel.biz/emails/emails.php?id=emails_from_SCN
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BOOK OFFERS
"LIEUTENANT COLONEL ALFRED JAMES TOMLINSON: MEMOIRS OF AN AFRICAN PIONEER AND BSAP OFFICER" is now available at Amazon.com, and can be shipped to anywhere in the world. This book contains excerpts from Lieut. Tomlinson's writings detailing his experiences as a member of the BSAP in Southern Rhodesia, where he rose from the rank of an ordinary trooper to retire as the commanding officer. It also includes the personal story of Majaqaba Ncube, a man who was enslaved by Lobengula when his entire village was massacred by the chief's soldiers. After he escaped, Lieut. Tomlinson saved him from certain death and gave him a job. They lost contact and were reunited after 45 years, when Majaqaba presented Lieut. Tomlinson with an earthenware jar.
Trish also writes romantic suspense and romantic comedy fiction. www.trishjaxon.com
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"P.K. VAN DER BYL - AFRICAN STATESMAN" by Hannes Wessels
ISBN: 978-1-920143-49-7 / paperback / illustrated
Retail price: R250.00, Web-site price: R200.00 + postage
The narrative gives the reader an overview of the history of the White man in southern Africa with detailed emphasis on the Rhodesian story through the life and times of PK van der Byl, one of the major players in a political drama that ended in the accession to power of Robert Mugabe under the auspices of the British government. By his very nature PK was controversial and confrontational. This account is likely to give offence to some because it portrays him as bluntly as he was in real life. Much can be contested about PK van der Byl but few will dispute he was an extremely colourful character with a devilish sense of humour. This memoir covers his life with a full flourish while doing nothing to detract from the seriousness of the international political and military conflict in which he was engaged. The reader will glean new information on a highly controversial subject and emerge with a more sympathetic understanding of what PK van der Byl and his colleagues did and strove for. The human tragedy that has followed the removal from power of Ian Smith and his Rhodesian Front party will almost certainly force the reader to deal with some uncomfortable conclusions, of value to anyone sincere about grappling with the volatile and deeply troubling challenges that confront all Africans today.
This book and others of interest can be purchased from 30 Degrees South via their web-site: www.30degreessouth.co.za
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"BLUE WATCH" by Gwyn Fford-Osborne
Rhodesia, in 1975 and a bloody vicious civil war is at its height. A war between the White minority supported by the Black majority and the ZAPU and ZANU terrorist groups, supported by Zambia and Mozambique. Kensington, a small town in the farming belt has been the subject of several terrorist attacks but with only a small police force for defence, the local T.A. unit having been called up for service on the Zambia border the situation appears grim. Until Iffor Meredith turns up on a pilgrimage to meet up with his wife and son of his old army buddy, recently murdered by terrorists. A deadly ambush on the "Dix" family and his escape from a land mine attack makes Iffor determined to offer resistance of some form or other to the terrorists. His application to join the Rhodesian Army has been accepted and he sets about forming a small militia. With all the fit men already on call up, who can he recruit from. Then he's invited to a darts match at the Moth Club and meets up with the remnants of the town's Fire Brigade, the men considered too old for call up. Blue Watch.
Available from: www.diadembooks.com
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CREST PUBLISHING BOOKS
Crest Publishing retails books by Glenn MacAskill (ex-BSAP Special Branch) entitled "King's Gold", "Crime Lords", "Kill Victoria!", "Hunt the Assassin" and "MacKinnon's Diamond", and by the late Michael Bowery including "Canham's Run", "The Sligo Piper" "Kill the President", "Al Qaeda Armageddon" and his autobiography "Shred when Read", as well as novels by David Ruppert entitled "The Seven Watchmen" and "The Greater Glory" - all of which will be of great interest to South Africans and ex-Rhodesians.
For more information, or to make an order, please contact Crest Publishing at: P.O.Box, 4178, Honeydew, Johannesburg, 2040, South Africa, e-mail: glennallanmacaskill@gmail.com, or visit the Crest Publishing web-site at: www.crestpublishing.co.za. Special discounts are available to ex-servicemen, Rhodies and Springboks!
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"THE SAINTS" - DVD versions of the book about the history of the RLI
Now available from Msasa Enterprises. Contact: msasasa@iafrica.com or UK tel.: 07732 685400.
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“AGAINST ALL ODDS” by George Wrigley
This book contains forty-five stories, which give snapshots of a fun-filled and adventurous, flying career. They describe heart-stopping episodes, narrow escapes from disaster, aircraft accidents, foolhardy escapades and vivid descriptions of fascinating characters along the way.
To order a copy contact George Wrigley at: wrig@bsatt.com
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WHERE ARE THEY NOW ?
No.190 : Mr. CHRIS MACQUET of Durban.
Chris Macquet was a very interesting person. He was evidently descended from a Highlander who fought for the young pretender Charles Stuart during the 1745 rebellion, but who then fled with him to France where his name was Francosized from MacKay to Macquet. Either his father or his grandfather emigrated to South Africa where their family became patriotic English-speaking South Africans. Chris himself was a prominent amateur cricketer in Durban, where he bravely campaigned against attempts to change the traditional structure of cricket in Natal. Quietly-spoken, he was a devoted family man, but tragically lost a son to leukemia at a very young age. It would be interested to learn whether he ever managed to escape to the UK – or to France.
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RECOMMENDED WEB-SITE OF THE MONTH
We have recently been informed about a very interesting and inspiring talk given by Daniel Hannan MEP at the Oxford Union, in which he expertly explained why socialism doesn’t work. A YouTube video of his masterful contribution to this Oxford Union debate can be found at :-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrivBvZ--SQ&list=FLIjuLiLHdFxYtFmWlbTGQRQ
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
DARK AGES
Sir,
I have read with the same horror as all civilised people of the horrific honour killing murder of a father's own daughter in Pakistan, the police ignoring rape in India, and the pregnant woman sentenced to death in two years' time and 100 lashes for the heinous crimes of marrying a non-Muslim and sleeping with him. I cannot forebear to point out that, in the days of the “wicked” imperialist British Empire, this kind of thing would never have been tolerated by our old District Commissioners. I also fear that lax immigration and multi-culturalist policies have brought it to Britain; we all know about the vile practice of female genital mutilation, which has never been a British custom.
Yours etc.,
M. Taylor, London, U.K.
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FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE
Sir,
I regret we cannot come to an agreement with the USA and the UK. I am surprised how wise and cunning Francois Holland, the president of France, is. He can save relations both with the EU and President Putin. Let that be a good lesson to all of us. Some evil-minded “lilliputs” as Estonia, Lithuania, Kosovo (a country of Muslim bastards), Georgia etc. always harm the EU and European nations. They behave like anti-Russia gnomes and often spoil good affairs between Russia, France, GB, Spain and Italy. On the other hand, China is not a good neighbour for Russians. We DO NOT TRUST THEM at all. It is like a terrible witchcraft. Our leaders are like bewitched - they cannot see the common real enemy and harm each other.
Look: Putin and Medvedev ALLOWED the West to fight against Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan. Russia did not interfere (only weak protests for the public opinion, no counter-action). The West “Gullivers” (the USA, GB and France) have the right to control some territories abroad. We recognize this right. But Russian leaders would like to control other territories as Crimea or East Ukraine.Eastern “Gulliver” has the cudgel too. Thus, we can control different regions and even HELP each other. As you remember your regrettable history, the French and the British fought against each other for the colonies all over the world for a long time. And what is the result? F*cking Negroes and other aborigines banished you all! It was an absolutely idiotic situation. You had to HELP each other to fight AGAINST aborigines and control them! Where is the British Empire? Where is the French Africa?
We do not learn by trial and errors. Muslims and the Chinese will defeat the USA and Russia. We are bewitched. I will pray to God we will be friends and allies, not competitors. Russians still sympathize with the Brits, French and even Americans. We hope our leaders will not be able to make mischief between us.
Yours etc.,
Boris Grig, Kaliningrad, Russia
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TERRITORIAL DISPUTE
Sir,
I read with anger in August’s SCN how Miss Elizabeth Anderson of the “Friends of the British Overseas Territories” had stabbed you in the back so terribly by pulling out from her speaking commitment at short notice. It seems to me that she was probably got at by that old scoundrel Allan Robertson. Shame on Miss Anderson for giving in to his pressure!
Yours etc.,
“Loyalist”, London, U.K.
[ Miss Anderson denied that she was “got at” by anyone to renege on her promise to speak at July’s Swinton Circle meeting. However we know as a fact that the wretched Robertson has practiced similar dirty-tricks in the past. – Ed.]
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MIKE HART-JONES – THE MAN BEHIND THE MYTH
During informal discussions following last month’s Springbok Club event the name of Mike Hart-Jones came up, and we were asked what we knew about him. We thought therefore that other supporters and readers of the SCN might be interested to learn of our experiences regarding this most charismatic but controversial character.
Michael Hart-Jones was born at Vereeniging in the late 1940s into a family of English-speaking South Africans. He moved to the UK in the early 1960s however, where he worked for the BBC in television production, and also met and married his first wife Gwen, who at that time was a ballerina with the Royal Ballet Company.
He emigrated to Rhodesia a few years later, where his precocious talents enabled him to become Head of Programmes at RTV whilst still only in his 20s. He then became a well-known name in Rhodesia, but together with a number of other leading RTV officials he resigned in the late 1970s because he opposed government interference to push a “pro-settlement” agenda. He then founded a company called “Rhodesian International Productions” together with the popular RTV presenter Derek Partridge, which aimed to present Rhodesia’s case to the outside world, and to campaign against any sell-out to the terrorists. They produced a couple of excellent pamphlets entitled “Rhodesia as it really is” which argued Rhodesia’s case, but alas a planned film which they aimed to produce under the same title was never completed because of the lack of funds.
Hart-Jones and Partridge aligned themselves fully with the Save Rhodesia Campaign, speaking on the same platform as the renowned American political writer Gary Allen (author of “None dare call it conspiracy”) during his tour of South Africa under the SRC auspices in 1978. Following the fall of Rhodesia in 1979, however, Partridge moved on to the United States, but Hart-Jones moved to Durban, where he maintained his support for the SRC’s successor organization, the South Africa First Campaign.
It was then alas that Hart-Jones’s life started to go wrong. He did not try to join SABC as might have been expected, as he knew many ex-RTV people who were now employed there who he didn’t have much confidence in. Instead he took on a job as manager of the La Lucia Squash Courts, a position which he was quite clearly unqualified for, but which was also far beneath his talents. He also at this time started to have a number of quite open affairs, the most famous being with Jessica Jones, the acclaimed singer.
He next founded his own film making company which he called “Anglo Film Productions” (with seemingly no fear of breaching the copyright of the Anglo-American conglomerate!), and offered employment positions to a number of associates who he had met through the SRC in this company. Warnings were soon received, however, that he had become a complete “Walter Mitty”, with some even terming him a “con-man” – though probably the phrase “a loveable rogue” would be more appropriate. His most audacious con-trick at this time was to convince officials of the Durban Turf Club (he came from a family of horse-racing enthusiasts) that he was making a film about the Durban July, and as a result managed to obtain complimentary tickets for himself and a number of mythical production assistants for the Owners and Trainers’ Enclosure at the 1979 July meeting – even though no film was being made! The company went out of existence shortly after this, and those whom he gave “employment” to never got paid a cent – apart of course from free admission to the Durban July! This of course left a very nasty taste in the mouth, and he completely disappeared from the scene in Durban shortly after this.
The next which we heard about Mike Hart-Jones was in the early 1990s, when mention of him being in the UK was made in the Rhodesians Worldwide magazine. A ‘phone call shortly after this warned us not to touch him however, as he had evidently been up to his old con-tricks again in his new country. We did manage to make telephonic contact with him however, but were alarmed by his implication that he had completely changed his political views from the Right to the extreme Left. He also revealed that he had re-married in the UK and had a young child by this second marriage. We agreed to meet up again, more for “old times sake” than anything, in spite of several misgivings, but he significantly never turned up for the agreed rendezvous - and he subsequently never even had the common decency to ‘phone or re-contact us in any way to apologise for letting us down. This was the last occasion that we had any direct contact with him.
It was therefore a complete surprise a few years ago when BBC2’s Newsnight programme ran an item about a con-man named “Michael Jones” who was evidently trying to market some magic potion made out of goats’ serum which could cure AIDS, which had been endorsed by both the King of Swaziland and (briefly!) by Richard E. Grant the actor. When “Michael Jones” was button-holed by the Newsnight reporter he turned out of course to be none other than Mike Hart-Jones! A few months later, moreover, Newsnight carried a further report about this same “Michael Jones”, this time after it had been revealed that he’d sold a huge uncut diamond for a massive sum to a Shropshire building company (one of Mike Hart-Jones’ proudest achievements was a documentary series which he produced for RTV about the diamond industry), which had been heavily queried by their accountants when they saw such an illogical large entry entered in their books!
Mike Hart-Jones has been a tragic character therefore. Hugely talented and someone who rose to the top of his profession at an outstandingly early age, but who sadly couldn’t cope with life when he came down in the world and no longer commanded the same fame and prestige which he once possessed. A con-man par excellence – but one who incredibly never seemed to get caught! In spite of the reprehensible nature of many of his activities, we’re afraid that we still can’t help admiring his sheer audacity!
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