European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 10, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes August 1985 columns comments Flora Lewis constructive engagement dragging Down image whatever americas moral involvement in South the Reagan administrations declared pol icy of constructive engagement amounts to political involvement beyond previous the rationale is that gentle persuasion can be the most effective Way for the United states to push the South african regime away from there is something to the argument that sanctions would Hurt South african Blacks and surrounding states More than they would pro apartheid and that they would serve to stiffen afrikaner but the situation is getting not and the official american Altitude is an increasingly important hard As it is to agree on specific measures that have a Chance of producing even Margi Nal Washington needs to provide a coherent there has been no shortage of Sharp denunciations of apartheid from no responsible administration figure has for the racist sys tem that denies All political and most civic rights to a majority of its the chasm opens with the inevitable Why protect Pretoria it was put quite directly to undersecretary of state Michael Armacost by australian reporters in a recent interview by sat Nicaragua is a country whose government you do not like and which you accuse of trying to Export Revo they said to South Africa is a coun try whose system of and notably you dont and you also deplore its exporting of its troops across its not to mention its illegal occupation of in one Case youve imposed Sanc in the other youre speaking of constructive in Why the double Standard Armacost mumbling about inter est in negotiations with both he Nicaragua is a Small country where sanctions can cause some real while they  make a significant difference to South but the state department that it int Only Distant allies that Are having trouble fitting this lame Waffle into the administrations proclaimed crusade for it is also a problem for radio free the congressionally funded station that broadcasts american views to Eastern broadcasters at radio free Europe have received guidance on How to handle the ticklish an internal memo instructs writers and speakers George will tags nov on apartheid by the has Wal drawn its ambassador sex new Africa mentioning South Africa to bring out two key the first takes the High Road any system founded on inequality before the Law and the wilful violation of Basic human rights is abhorrent to this is True regardless of the political colouring of the oppressive and regardless of the criteria upon which the discriminatory practices be they ethnic origin or such shaky foundations undermine the Security of the entire As the South african leadership will sooner or later have to recon that is indeed americas message to communist con trolled Eastern presumably to the whole but the second Point pulls Way attempting to make a moral distinction that goes even further than the real policy inspiring the former Delegate Jeane Kirkpatrick difference Between authoritarian friends and totalitarian it said however wicked apartheid May South unlike the does not constitute a men Ace to the free and its system does not require aggression against foreign countries to assure its Surv Pretoria has intervened in neighbouring states to remove threats to its own but it has not tried to Export the note says this explains sanctions against Nicaragua and not South it adds a similar contrast illustrates the reasons behind american policy toward Cuba and on the one and Chile and Paraguay on the this is the answer Armacost knew better than to give in this abject excuse is dragging the United states into sharing the blame before world opinion for South Africa if Washington cant manage anything More it should at least seek consistency and try to limit the damage that the mounting crisis will do to americas c new York times news service making drug smuggling As unpleasant As addiction Iii re with a Short course on the constitutional Law of the alimentary the question confronting customs officials when Pas sengers de planed at los Angeles from colom was whether the woman was a balloon such people smuggle cocaine by swallowing balloons containing the balloons that Are passed through the smugglers alimentary canal after the smuggler has passed through two years the question confronting the supreme court was whether the fourth amendments Protection against unreasonable searches and seizures was violated by the customs officials method of Ascer Taining the contents of her alimentary one who had caught Many such had reason for suspicion when he saw in her passport that she had made at least eight recent trips to Miami or los Angeles from capital of the cocaine the lady spoke no had no family or friends had in Cash but no could not recall How her ticket had been purchased and said she planned to travel around los Angeles by buy ing goods for her husbands store in the inspector requested a female colleague to con duct a putdown and strip it revealed that the woman Abdomen had a firm she consented to a but when asked said she was and when she Learned she would be handcuffed while travel ing to the she withdrew she was then Given three she could return to Bogota on the next available or receive an or remain in detention until she produced a monitored Bowel she chose the but could not get a seat on the flight leaving the next sixteen hours after Landing from her 10hour she was showing signs of what an appeals court called heroic efforts to resist the usual Calls of then officers sought and received from a Federal Magis trate authorization for a rectal examination and involuntary before the xray results were in on the pregnancy test that proved she was a physician removed from her rectum a balloon containing a foreign she was during the next four Days she passed 88 balloons containing 528 grains of the appeals court reversed her arguing that although customs official had justifiably High they should have quickly sought authority for an xray rather than waiting for natural processes to confirm their the court said the indications of smuggling were not sufficiently Clear to justify the protracted which was humiliating to the the supreme court has now it notes that the fourth amendment is More permissive of police Power at the nations Border for cars can be searched at or on the basis of the passengers ethnicity than in the Interior of the coun Justice Brennan to say that he just Dis sents is to match the understatement with which japans emperor announced surrender after two atom War situation has developed not necessarily to japans Brennan has an olympic class capacity for alarm and for finding portents of a police state in police proce his dissent packs two walloping words ing and into its first and then shifts into High describing what the customs officials did As the hallmark of a police state and unbridled authoritarianism in an authoritarian Twilight zone on the Brennan charges that the customs officials had a reasonable but Why the at most the fourth amendment is founded on the idea of no matter what the court has and the suspicion was not just it was the woman had a humiliating experience As the customs official did their which is to prevent her from practising her chosen she made a bad and Justice writing for the a cites an Early court opinion that creative engaged in postdoc evaluations of police can almost always imagine some alternative Means by which the objective of the police might have been a the unpleasant facts of this Case deserve dissemination so americans can contemplate the Nasty details of the fight to protect the nation from pandemic poisoning by balloon smugglers Are not the Core of the the Core is the millions of stupid and criminal americans who comprise a brackish Pool of addiction and the Law should attack demand As Well As and do so by making the lives of drug users As unpleasant As that woman experience at los Angeles c Washington Post writers group in the and cartoons on this Page represent to considered As representing those of the stars and stripes or the United states