A curious position has now developed with the establishment of motor assembly plants in the areas bordering on the African reserves. The Government has been exerting considerable effort to persuade manufacturers to establish factories in these areas, for the employment of tribal Africans at much lower wages than normally paid in the main industrial areas of the country.
In response to the special facilities offered, two Japanese motor manufacturers have decided to build factories in border areas, Like all border factories, they will operate on the basis of Government policy, viz. “‘all- White” capital and “all-Black” labour. Only managerial and higher technical posts will be occupied by Whites.
The Toyoto-Toyopet factory is to be erected outside East London, where the English textile manufacturer Mr. Cyril Lord has opened a large mill. This company will have an initial capital outlay of R2,500,000 and will qualify for all the border industry facilities and benefits.
According to Dr. S. P. du Toit Viljoen, chairman of the Permanent Committee on Border Industries, the Renault and Mercedes Benz organisations has have also drawn up plans to set up assembly plants in the East London border area.
A second Japanese plant is to be built soon at Rosslyn, outside Pretoria — another border area. This is the Nissan-Datsun factory, the initial cost of which will be R3,000,000.
UNCONTROLLED
Although a 25 per cent. White quota has been laid down for East London, it is unlikely that the Government would enforce it in the proposed Toyopet, Renault and Mercedes plants, if the manufacturers opposed it.
In any case, to compel border factories to employ a quota of Whites would defeat the main purpose of border industry development, which is to provide the means for the ultimate total segregation of the races in their employment.
There can be no doubt that the Government is slowly but surely being caught up in the contradictions of its own policy in regard to job reservation and economic development.