The Chronicle

BULAWAYO, Monday, August 14, 1967 — Many Roman Catholics expressed anger after yesterday’s services at the publication in a Sunday newspaper of an advertisement inviting Catholics to oppose their bishops’ stand against the proposed property owners’ protection legislation.

This is the Bill expected to be placed before Parliament soon and designed to prevent the encroachment into residential areas of members of any race whom residents in the areas in question may not desire as neighbours.

The advertisement, inserted apparently, by a private individual in Umtali measures 7in by three columns and asks all Roman Catholics to sign a petition if they disagree with a pastoral message from the five Roman Catholic bishops — read out in all Roman Catholic churches in Rhodesia on June 18 — in which the bishops called on all Christians “to take a firm stand” against the introduction of legislation that could restrict residential areas to separate races.

The advertisement said that signatories to the petition would be “showing Rhodesians that the bishops’ recently published views on this matter are purely private and that they do not represent all Catholics.”

People supporting the petition were asked to return their completed forms to Mr B Stapleton of Umtali.

According to one Roman Catholic priest, many of his congregation spoke of their “horror” at the “gross public disobedience” to the bishops by the insertion of the advertisement.

A spokesman for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Salisbury said today the church expressed sympathy for people who were so mistaken as to presume that the statement issued by the five Catholic bishops eight weeks ago was a purely private opinion.

The bishops stated that the proposed legislation was against charity and justice. The spokesman said he had no knowledge of Mr Stapleton, who was collecting signatories to the petition.