National Union of South African Students

NUSAS was founded in 1924[1]: 381  under the guidance of Leo Marquard, at a conference at Grey College by members of the Student Representative Councils (SRC) of South African Universities.

NUSAS backed the African National Congress (ANC) in their campaign against repression, and adopted the Freedom Charter and involved its members in non-racial political projects in education, the arts and trade union spheres.

[citation needed] This confronted Apartheid on the streets and in both the local and international media, infuriating the Nationalist Party Government who cracked down on the rising student revolt on several fronts in the mid-1970s.

The five accused were Glenn Moss, Charles Nupen, Eddie Webster (a lecturer at Wits University), Cedric de Beer and Karel Tip.

[9]: 218–19 [10] The state alleged that the five accused had entered into a conspiracy to further the objectives of communism and aims of the African National Congress and South Africa Communist Party.

It was unclear why he was called so the defence team, led by Arthur Chaskalson, applied for permission to consult with three ANC leaders serving sentences on Robben Island, Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, and Govan Mbeki.

In the event, the defence team decided not to call the political prisoners to testify because it would raise the profile of the trial and risk the magistrate becoming hostile towards the accused.