24/02/2018 Witness

Now it is time for Witness.

I am here to guide you through five

extraordinary moments from history.

We will need a South African judge

who took part in the truth and can

see a show in -- reconciliation

committee. And we will hear from a

British scientist about the smog

that used to engulf Britain. We

start with one of the 50th

anniversary of the Vietnam War.

During 1968, communists in north

Vietnam launched a huge surprise

offensive across south Vietnam with

the support of local guerillas, the

Vietcong. This is one of the members

of the Vietcong which fought

American and South Vietnamese forces

in the city.

They have been forced back to part

of the northern side of the river

dividing the city. The Americans and

their allies cannot drive them out

without destroying the city.

TRANSLATION:

The American

bombardment was very heavy. We hid

underground. When we came out, it

was like standing on the moon.

Complete destruction. That is how

fierce it was. Of course, facing

death, we were scared. So afraid to

shoot they wet themselves. But once

the bullets were fired, everyone

disregarded death. No one cared any

more. We just tried to find ways to

make death glorified and beautiful

instead of dying in disgrace.

The

bureau in North Vietnam decided to

launch a general uprising everywhere

in south Vietnam. On the 31st of

January, 1968.

It was the lunar

holiday of Tet, normally a time of

truce. The Vietcong entered the city

with ease and encountered no major

resistance. Local residents were

also caught by surprise. It was

because our plan was carried out in

absolute secrecy. The counter-attack

by the Americans and allies was so

fierce, it was probably the toughest

one in the Vietnam War. In all other

places, including Saigon, the DR

Congo tax filled quickly, within a

few days. -- Viet Cong attacks

failed. But thanks to local support,

this one lasted 20 days. During the

Tet Offensive, I felt the kiss of

death five times. A mortar was fired

towards our position one time, and

it burned my hair as it went past

me. Any closer, I would have been

there. -- dead. We were exposed by

being in the city. We were not able

to resist American firepower. When

we drew back into the jungle, we had

suffered great losses the cost and

civilian suffering has been

terrible.

It was made clear the

paradox was to win back control

meant that the Americans and south

it is destroyed what they claimed to

protect.

The Americans realised they

could not win the Vietnam War with

military force, so they had to find

a way out. The 1968 battle played a

decisive role leading to our final

victory.

During the battle, forces from both

sides committed a number of

mistakes. So many innocent victims

were killed, not only from one side.

50 years have passed. It is now the

time for the current leaders of this

regime to come clean on this issue,

to give justice for the victims.

He

still lives in the city. In these

times of Brexit, it is hard to

imagine, but in 1963, Britain was

actually desperate to join Europe!

British leaders of the day wanted to

become members of what was then

known as the European Economic

Community. There was a problem, the

French president was strongly

opposed. Our next guest was a

British diplomat at the time.

Thank

God for Englishmen.

The British

people, who only slowly came around

to the idea to join the EEC, were

really very shocked.

With

communication between countries a

world apart now only a few hours, it

compels new thinking along the

economic front.

1961, the British

government applied to join the

European community. Edward Heath was

appointed.

I have made a full

statement to the members of the

European economic group. In that

statement I explained that the UK

government wished to take its full

part in working for a better

European unity.

The negotiations

moved to Brussels. This was the

point at which I got added to the

British negotiating delegation. The

idealism one found in Brussels back

then was contagious, actually. And I

think all of us who went were

convinced that for Britain it was

very important for those

negotiations to succeed. Even back

at the start, people realised that

Charles de Gaulle had grave doubts

about edition three. -- British

entry. The six were trading among

themselves. The pattern of Britain

was outward looking. In particular,

we traded a lot with the

Commonwealth countries, and, of

course, they had become extremely

dependent on this. There was a lot

of worry about where the French

resident's position had reached,

whether he was going to veto British

men bishops. -- President. --

membership. Attention focused on a

press conference he was going to

give in the middle of January. He

was seen we must ask ourselves, is

Britain really ready. I think we

need in our heart of hearts that he

was really saying he was not going

to let us in the good the reason

stated by France is over differences

in agricultural policy. That final

negotiation, the long room with the

British delegation at the far end,

the French chatting among themselves

and giggling and not joining the

others, it was very symbolic. All of

the French on one side, and the five

who supported British entry, very

much on the other.

Former British

diplomat, Juliet Campbell. And now

we go to China to be in 1968,

Chairman Mao officially launched a

scheme to provide healthcare to

rural areas by giving thousands of

people a six medical training and

sending them out to work in

villages. -- basic. They were known

as barefoot doctors. Gordon was one

of them.

I became a doctor after I

graduated from high school simply

because I was one of the most

educated young people. I did not

have any training, any experience,

knowledge, in medicine, whatsoever.

Chairman Mao says the six must he

healed and has caused a shakeup in

health services in China. -- sick.

Medical attention has been provided

where there was none before. The

most striking the Parliament was a

training of a vast core of barefoot

doctors. They have farm work to do

as well in training is limited, but

it can save countless lives.

We

provided basic services to

villagers, mostly in common cold

conditions, infections, diarrhoea

things like that. Sometimes we had

to take shoes off to work in the

farm. We were not always barefoot. I

do have shoes! I started as a

barefoot doctor to not only treat

people, but animals. We had horses,

pigs, so in the beginning, I

practised work injecting by giving

shots to pigs and horses, not as

difficult as humans. All the people

in the village believed to my care

would be good enough for them to

take care of their health. Because

if I was not there for their

healthcare, who would be there

otherwise? No-one. One of my

relatives, she had a problem with

her teeth. So then she said, my

little brother, can you do something

for me? And I said, yeah, let me

give it a try. After three or four

days, her problem was gone. That

news spread to the whole village.

Epidemics were checked. One doctor

said smugly that the only diseases

we get in China are from Hong Kong.

Certainly, cholera and smallpox took

fewer victims than in the old days.

Most people in China and many people

in other countries like outside of

China perceived the barefoot doctor

system very highly. My view is

somewhat different from that. Back

in the 60s and 70s, as a result of

the cultural Revolution, the Chinese

higher education system was shut

down. But if I could choose between

going to the countryside for years

or going to college, mostly I would

choose college. Since that was the

only choice available to me, there

was something positive.

And he is

now eight professor of health

economics at Peking University. --

A. Remember, you can watch the show

on line. Just go to BBC .co .uk.

Next, we are off to South Africa

which in the 1990s face the daunting

challenge of

which in the 1990s face the daunting

challenge of facing the legacy of

apartheid rule. We spoke at two just

as Sisi Khampepe who served on the

country's Truth and Reconciliation

Commission.

We are charged to

unearth the truth about our past. To

lay the ghosts of that passed so

they will not return to haunt us. I

was a member of the truth commission

and also a member of the amnesty

community.

South Africans face a

collective tested today. The

reaction to these hearings will show

whether they are able to expose the

sins of apartheid yet free

themselves from the desire for

revenge against those who propped up

a system.

The Truth and

Reconciliation Commission allowed

amnesty only if the perpetrator

confessed that they committed the

crime.

I did terrible things. I did

terrible things to members of the

ANC.

I grew up in Soweto. It was

rampant with security police. It

felt like hell. Being in the city

required a special permit if you

were a black person. Absolutely no

freedom of movement. I had also

suffered as an activist by being

shot in the leg by the police while

attending a funeral for my fellow

students. It was at a graveyard

where the police again started

shooting. I survived. Others were

killed on the spot. It is a scar

that is a constant reminder of where

I come from. I knew the harshness of

the system first-hand. Yet as a

member of the amnesty committee, I

had to decide that these people had

to be granted amnesty. Not because

they were apologetic but merely

because they disclose the truth.

That was really difficult.

Did you

then shoot that man?

Yes, that is

correct. People would cry. Just by

listening to the explanation that

was given of how people were

tortured. People were killed.

What

kind of man uses a method like this

on other human beings?

There were

occasions when people who applied

for amnesty did say sorry. Those

were few and far between. But it was

extraordinarily difficult for me

when people did not even care to

apologise.

There was no other way

other than to eliminate these

people.

These hearings provided a

forum for those who have been

treated, in the past, as if they

were rubbish.

Archbishop Desmond

Tutu was the star of the Truth and

Reconciliation Commission. Without

his leadership, the commission would

not have been able to attain its

objectives. I think the amnesty

process assured that people were not

vengeful. That there was proper

public acknowledgement and

recognition of those who had

suffered.

We are asking from you to

please forgive us.

Going through a

process of coming out from our

grief. But here we have the lovely

people who are generous. Their

generosity is always amazing. I wake

up every morning and I am grateful

that after all, I am a South

African.

Just as Sisi Khampepe

talking to Witness in South Africa.

Finally, it is hard to imagine now

but London used often to be shrouded

in thick smog for days at a time. In

1952, conditions were so bad that

thousands of people died in the

government eventually had to act.

Scientist Brian Commons was called

in to study the killer smog.

Ordinary fog does little harm. Smog,

a mixture of smoke and four, has

become one of the greatest mass

murderers of modern times.

The smoke

began on a Friday and it was black.

It was described as a pea soup

because it was a little yellow wish.

You could smell it. It tasted a

little acidic. And it caused

absolute havoc. The levels of

pollution were horrendous.

You could

not see your feet. I remember on one

particular occasion I wanted to

cross a wide road and I shuffled

across and after about ten minutes I

did not know where I was and,

finally, I ended up on the same side

of the road as I started. It was

extremely cold. Brought a and, of

course, Londoners wanted to keep

warm. And so they don't call on

their open fires. The pollution did

not rise up, it tended to drift down

and pervade the streets and

everything else. The smog got in

every way. You could not avoid it.

Special filtering masks are the

latest weapon devised...

Quite a

number of people had bronchitis

because of industrial pollution

exposure and because they smoked. Of

course, when a breeze polluted air,

this became very hard for them.

Heaven help the doctor on a night

like this... What can you do when

records and experience tells you the

city 's death rate is about to jump.

As many as 100,000 people in London

were made ill by the pollution at

the time, particularly people with

asthma, cardiovascular problems.

Also the very young and the elderly,

they also suffered.

If you looked at

his x-ray you would see plenty.

And

to see somebody fighting for air is

a harrowing experience. Trying to

get Aero into their lungs. And, of

course, it was dirty air. Even in

the ward. -- trying to get a. There

were estimates that there were some

4000 Access deaths and there was a

shortage of cough and because there

were so many people who died. --

4000 Access deaths. The government

recognised that we needed to study

the pollution and that is why we set

up an air pollution research unit in

Saint Barts Hospital in central

London. I was a founding member of

that. In 1956, the government

decided to pass something called the

clean air act to try and discourage

and minimise the amount of smoky

flues are being used.

New flats with

our chimneys are part of the

campaign...

We still had smog but as

time went on we had the availability

of smokeless fuels like natural gas

and oil. Without that, we would have

been in a bad way.

Doctor Brian

Commons there. That is all from

Witness this month here at the

British library. We will be back

next month with more first-hand

accounts of extraordinary moments in

history. For now, from me and the

rest of the team, goodbye.