John Osmers, a New Zealander who has been involved with assisting South African refugees from apartheid, and families of migrant workers in Lesotho, will be speaking at Victoria University this Thursday 4 June in the Union Hail from 1.00 to 2.00pm.

Canon John Osmers was born in Christchurch, and was educated at the Canterbury University, where he graduated with an MA in 1959. During his time at university he was involved in the Student Christian Movement.

After this he went to England to receive theological training at Murfield Theological College. He also spent a year at the London School of Economics studying African languages and anthropology. Before going to South Africa Canon Osmers served for three years in a Yorkshire Anglican Parish.

For the past sixteen years he has worked in Lesotho (pronounced "Lesutu"), a small mountainous country (12,000 sq. miles) which, although it is officially "self governing", is completely within the borders of the South African Republic (wedged in between Cape Province, Natal, and Orange Free State) and is economically dependent on South Africa.

Long experience in South Africa

John Osmers often travelled to South Africa and was involved in the University Christian Movement there, which was involved in a campaign to create awareness of social conditions especially amongst Black students. (In South Africa, campuses are segregated).

He was banned from South Africa in 1970 because of this involvement (UCM was "dissolved" in 1972 due to pressure from the South African Government).

For seven years he was chairman of the Social Services Commission of the Lesotho Christian Council, and has been working with families of migrant workers (of Lesotho's population of about 1.5 million, an estimated 200,000 work in South Africa, mainly in the strategic mining industry), and with INS rehabilitating refugees from the oppressive regime in South Africa.

On July 5 1979 Canon Osmers had his hand blown off by a parcel bomb, sent to him by the South African security forces. He is now unable to return to Lesotho, because of pressure on the Lesotho Government by South African authorities to withdraw his passport. This is probably due to his involvement in the ANC (African National Congress) liberation movement, which is banned in South Africa.

Canon Osmers plans to go to Botswana to continue his work assisting refugees from South Africa.