LOOKING BACK

FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES 50 YEARS AGO

David Ben-Gurion, 87, who died yesterday after a cerebral haemorrhage, was Israel’s first and longest-serving prime minister. Ben-Gurion, who as early as 1907 urged Jews in Palestine to arm themselves against the Arabs, declared an independent Jewish state there 41 years later. His death marked the end of an era in the history of modern Israel. He arrived in the country in 1906 from Poland, and during the next 60 years was active in the building of the Jewish state. He championed the revival of the Hebrew language and called for Jewish immigration. He led the Jewish defence in the war of liberation from 1947-1948 and declared the birth of the Jewish state in May 1948. —— December 3 1973

FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES 25 YEARS AGO

South Africa’s youth have shunned the vote by staying away from voter registration en masse. Of the first generation of people entitled to vote after the anti-apartheid struggle — those aged under 20 — only 5% have bothered to apply for registration, according to an early analysis of trends by the Independent Electoral Commission. Political parties have slammed the commission for poor organisation around registration, blaming it, and not disillusionment among voters, for the poor turnout.The secretary-general of the ANC, Kgalema Motlanthe, whose party will rely heavily on the youth vote, said young people had not had the patience to go from station to station to find where they should register. The DP also blamed the commission and absence of barcoded IDs and the NP said November was a poor choice for registration for students. — December 6 1998