South African President Warns Rival Blacks to Halt Fighting
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JOHANNESBURG — President Frederik W. de Klerk threatened to use the “full weight” of the government’s powers to halt fighting between rival black movements in strife-torn Natal province today after three days of bloodshed that left at least 38 dead.
As his aides stepped up efforts to halt the fighting, De Klerk said that violence throughout the country had reached “unacceptable proportions” and declared that there was “no room for violence from any quarter in determining the future of South Africa.”
“If certain elements on the left and on the right continue their present course of violence and lawlessness, the government will be obliged to use the full weight of its power to restore law and order in an unprejudiced manner,” De Klerk said.
He told the Cape Town Press Club that he will announce measures to deal with the situation in Natal on Monday but declined to disclose details.
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