The Union of South Africa, one of the principal member-states in the British Commonwealth of Nations, was called upon during 1942 to play an increasingly important part in the war against the Axis Powers. The war in the Middle East has thrown into sharp relief the importance of the Cape sea route in the Allied lines of communication. South African ports have become the indispensable ports of call en route to all the theaters of war in the Near East and Middle East. South Africa has indeed played a double role in the defense of this sea route. She has no navy of her own, but under the Smuts-Churchill agreement of 1924 the Union is responsible for the land defense of Simonstown, the British naval station near Cape Town. In addition the Union has developed coastal defenses manned by Coast Garrison units, and has established mine sweeping, patrolling, and examination services in coastal waters. The fleets employed in this work are composed largely of whalers, trawlers, etc., converted to wartime use. The strongest arm, however, of the Seaward Defense Force is the air reconnaissance squadrons which patrol thousands of miles of the African coast line.
South African troops which have been on active service since June 10, 1940, when Italy declared war, continued during 1942 campaigning in East Africa and in North Africa. The Union thus continued to maintain large military units at the distant and extreme northern end of the African continent. These troops have had a material share in the North African fighting of the past 18 months. South African troops also participated in the British occupation of Madagascar in 1942.
Production of War Equipment.
This has been the greatest and most difficult task for the Union, but 1942 witnessed further notable success in production of war materials. When war broke out South Africa was almost totally unprepared. There was little military equipment and what there was was largely obsolete. Some factors favored the rapid development of the present large-scale war industries. The Union is rich in base metals and mineral resources. Unlimited coal has made possible production of cheap electric power. A steel industry which at the outbreak of war supplied one-third of the domestic market has been rapidly expanded. The explosives industry and the heavy engineering industries associated with gold-mining and South Africa's state-owned railroad system have been expanded and harnessed to war production. As a result, the Iron and Steel Corporation (Iscor) is producing armor plate for armored cars, general service trucks and steel helmets, and operates an ordnance factory for the treatment of gun barrels, and manufacture of special steels and tool steels. Its foundries manufacture heavy shells and replacement parts for equipment used in the Middle and Near East. The South African Mint is producing .303 ammunition on a scale beyond the Union's own requirements, and the surplus is being shipped abroad.
The year 1942 also witnessed the mass production of armored cars, the only important parts being engine and chassis. In one 18-month period more than 30,000 motor vehicles were sent to East Africa. Much of the repair work on mechanized equipment of the Middle East and Near East campaigns is being done by engineering shops in or organized by the Union. Other war activities which have reached new peaks during 1942 include the production of clothing, uniforms, blankets, boots, and shoes. Millions of pairs of military boots are being made for other Dominions. By the summer of 1942 the number of Union factories engaged wholly or part-time in war production exceeded six hundred.
Raw Materials.
Wool next to gold is the Union's most important export, and under a Wool Purchase Agreement, Great Britain is purchasing the entire wool clip for the duration of the war and one year thereafter. To Great Britain the Union is continuing to ship 'strategic' metals such as manganese, chrome, and asbestos, and important foodstuffs such as sugar, dried fruits and dairy products.
Postwar Development.
A notable feature of South Africa's wartime effort is the fact that it is planned with a view to post-war development. An Industrial Development Corporation has been set up to advise and assist new industries and to assure that they are so planned that they can be carried on after the war. F. C. Sturrock, Minister of Railways and Harbors, believes that the new armament industry may make it possible for the Union to build its own locomotives after the war. A machine tool industry has already been started and likewise a South African shipbuilding industry. On Feb. 28, General Smuts laid the foundation stone of a South African Naval Training Base at Cape Town suggesting that this was the beginning of coordination of South Africa's Sea Service into a single Naval Service which would be typically South African.
Party Politics and the War.
In the lower house of the bicameral legislature created by the Constitution of 1910 the political parties have fought some of the most bitter battles of modern constitutional history. The present government is headed by the Prime Minister, Field Marshal J. C. Smuts, soldier-statesman, Minister of Defense, Minister of External Affairs, and Commander-in-Chief of the Union Forces. He leads the most powerful of the political parties, the United Party of Afrikaans and English-speaking followers. Two minor parties each have a representative in the cabinet: the Dominion Party, led by Col. C. F. Stallard, and the Labor Party, led by W. B. Madelcy. The Opposition is represented in the Assembly by the Reunited Nationalist Opposition, headed by Dr. D. F. Malan; the National-Socialist or 'New Order' group, headed by Oswald Pirow; and the Afrikaner Party whose nominal leader was the former Prime Minister, Gen. J. B. M. Hertzog, who died November 21, 1942, but which is actually led in the Lower House by E. A. Conroy. These opposition parties have opposed and continue to oppose the Union's participation in the war, but the inter-party strife among them appears to obviate any possibility of a serious parliamentary challenge to the Government's policy.
The House of Assembly consists of 153 members, three of whom are elected by native (Bantu) constituencies and are not members of any party. The United Party in the Assembly comprises 71 members, the Dominion Party nine members, and the Labor Party (including Labor Independent) four members. The three representatives of Bantu constituencies also support the Government's war policy.
The Nationalist Party has 39 members in the House, the 'New Order' 17 members, and the Afrikaner Party nine members. The Speaker of the House of Assembly does not, as a rule, exercise his vote and, allowing for casual vacancies and absentee members, the Government has an effective working majority of about twenty.
Foreign Relations.
Speaking over an international hook-up from London on Oct. 31, Premier Smuts called for an elaboration of the Atlantic Charter in 'the economic and social sphere' to guarantee a postwar 'healthy international life.' During September he called on President Roosevelt to aid in unification of the British and American war effort. The Union of South Africa maintains a legation in Washington, D. C. The Minister is Ralph William Close. On Oct. 31, Minister Close revealed that the Union's army earlier in the year had numbered at least 163,000 men composed entirely of volunteers.
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