Cable Briefs (Press, 7 July 1989)

On 7 July 1989, South Africa announced the successful test firing of a rocket booster at a test range in Cape Province, although it did not provide specific details regarding the missile's performance or intended purpose. This announcement followed a report by the "Washington Times" suggesting that South Africa was prepared to conduct tests on an intermediate-range ballistic missile developed with assistance from Israel. Armscor, the state-owned weapons manufacturer, declined to comment on the claims made in the media. In Berlin, a 24-year-old East German man made a successful escape to West Germany by climbing over the Berlin Wall in full view of border patrols, with no shots fired. This event came shortly after East German President Erich Honecker advised that border guards had been instructed not to open fire on escapees, marking a notable shift in policy, especially following a recent incident where a 20-year-old man was shot dead attempting a similar escape. In Papua New Guinea, Prime Minister Rabbie Namaliu cancelled his trip to a South Pacific Forum in Kiribati, citing the critical situation on Bougainville Island as requiring his immediate attention. His deputy, Akoka Doi, will represent him at the forum. In environmental news, approximately 200 West German Greenpeace activists staged a protest at the Hoechst chemicals plant near Frankfurt by invading parts of the facility to demonstrate against the production of harmful ozone-depleting substances. The activists occupied cranes and unfurled banners as part of their protest. Mikhail Gorbachev, General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party, publicly revealed that he was baptised in the Russian Orthodox Church, describing this as normal. He had previously discussed his early experiences with the church during a visit to Britain in 1984. In Ireland, parents concerned about adolescent drinking are planning to establish the country's first alcohol-free pub, with no Guinness or other alcoholic beverages available. Moscow's mayor, Valery Saikin, expressed urgency regarding the city's extensive pollution problems, calling for action to mitigate the damage inflicted on air, water, and soil by various industries. Lieutenant-General Igor Sinoplanikov reported that doctors found no signs of radiation poisoning in the crew of a Soviet nuclear submarine that experienced a fire off Norway. In China, officials notified certain hotels in Beijing to remove satellite dishes that capture foreign news broadcasts, indicating government efforts to control the information accessible to the public. In the UK, transport workers brought the rail network to a standstill amid a wave of labour unrest that poses increasing challenges to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's government, with a national dock strike anticipated the following week. In San Francisco, the city became the first major U.S. city to offer "domestic partner" certificates for same-sex and unmarried heterosexual couples. However, the first applicants were turned away due to an administrative delay in distributing the certificates. A survey in Britain suggested a lack of scientific knowledge among the public, with many participants unaware of basic scientific facts, including the Earth’s orbit around the sun and the effectiveness of antibiotics against viruses. In a more unusual story, a four-year-old boy in Jiangsu, China, named Kung Mingming, reportedly began smoking at the encouragement of his father as a means to quiet him, and was now struggling with an early addiction. Finally, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher strongly refuted claims that the nuclear power sector would be excluded from her electricity privatisation plans, following a report suggesting that decommissioning issues could deter investor interest.

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