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Project Coast was a top-secret
chemical A chemical substance is a unique form of matter with constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Chemical substances may take the form of a single element or chemical compounds. If two or more chemical substances can be combin ...
and
biological weapons Biological agents, also known as biological weapons or bioweapons, are pathogens used as weapons. In addition to these living or replicating pathogens, toxins and biotoxins are also included among the bio-agents. More than 1,200 different kin ...
(CBW) programme instituted by the
apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
-era government of South Africa in the 1980s. Project Coast was the successor to a limited postwar CBW programme, which mainly produced the lethal agents CX powder and
mustard gas Mustard gas or sulfur mustard are names commonly used for the organosulfur compound, organosulfur chemical compound bis(2-chloroethyl) sulfide, which has the chemical structure S(CH2CH2Cl)2, as well as other Chemical species, species. In the wi ...
, as well as non-lethal
tear gas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymatory agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the Mace (spray), early commercial self-defense spray, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the ey ...
for riot control purposes. The programme was headed by the cardiologist Wouter Basson, who was also the personal physician of South African Prime Minister P. W. Botha.


History

From 1975 onwards, the
South African Defence Force The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence Fo ...
(SADF) found itself embroiled in conventional battles in Angola as a result of the
South African Border War The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...
. The perception that its enemies had access to battlefield chemical and biological weapons (CBW) led South Africa to begin expanding its programme, initially as a defensive measure and by researching vaccines. As the years went on, research shifted to offensive uses. In 1981, Botha ordered the SADF to develop CBW technology for use against South Africa's enemies. In response, the head of the
South African Medical Service The South African Medical Service (SAMS) was a branch of the South African Defence Force (SADF). In 1994 when the SADF was merged with various other military and armed resistance forces as part of the post-apartheid reforms the SAMS became the Sout ...
division, which was responsible for defensive CBW capabilities, hired Wouter Basson, a cardiologist, to visit other countries and report back on their respective CBW capabilities. He returned with the recommendation that South Africa's programme be expanded. In 1983, Project Coast was formed, with Basson at its head. To hide the programme and its procurement of CBW-related substances, Project Coast formed four front companies: Delta G Scientific Company, Roodeplaat Research Laboratories (RRL), Protechnik and Infladel. Ben Raubenheimer was appointed as CEO. Project Coast created a progressively larger variety of lethal offensive CBW toxins and biotoxins, in addition to the defensive measures. Initially, they were intended for use by the military in combat as a last resort. To that end, they copied Soviet techniques and designed devices that looked like ordinary objects but could poison those targeted for assassination. Examples included umbrellas and walking sticks that fired pellets containing poison, syringes disguised as screwdrivers, and poisoned beer cans and envelopes. In the early 1990s, with the end of apartheid, South Africa's weapons of mass destruction programmes were stopped. Despite efforts to destroy equipment, stocks, and information from those programmes, some still remain, leading to fears that they may find their way into the possession of terrorist networks. In May 2002, Daan Goosen, the former head of South Africa's biological weapons programmes, contacted the
Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
(FBI) and offered to exchange existing bacterial stocks from the programmes in return for , together with immigration permits for him and 19 other associates and their family members. The offer was eventually refused, with the FBI claiming that the strains were obsolete and therefore no longer a threat.


Unusual features

The South African chemical weapons programme investigated all the standard CBW agents such as irritant riot control agents, lethal
nerve agent Nerve agents, sometimes also called nerve gases, are a class of organic chemistry, organic chemicals that disrupt the mechanisms by which nerves transfer messages to organs. The disruption is caused by the blocking of acetylcholinesterase (ACh ...
s and
anticholinergic Anticholinergics (anticholinergic agents) are substances that block the action of the acetylcholine (ACh) neurotransmitter at synapses in the central nervous system, central and peripheral nervous system. These agents inhibit the parasympatheti ...
deliriant Deliriants are a subclass of hallucinogen. The term was coined in the early 1980s to distinguish these drugs from psychedelics such as LSD and dissociatives such as ketamine, due to their primary effect of causing delirium, as opposed to th ...
s, which have been researched by virtually all countries that have carried out CBW research. The South African programme differed from the CBW programmes of many countries in its focus on developing non-lethal agents to help suppress internal dissent. This led to the investigation of unusual non-lethal agents, including illicit recreational drugs such as
phencyclidine Phencyclidine or phenylcyclohexyl piperidine (PCP), also known in its use as a street drug as angel dust among other names, is a dissociative anesthetic mainly used recreationally for its significant mind-altering effects. PCP may cause hall ...
,
MDMA 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), commonly known as ecstasy (tablet form), and molly (crystal form), is an empathogen–entactogenic drug with stimulant and minor Psychedelic drug, psychedelic properties. In studies, it has been used ...
,
methaqualone Methaqualone is a hypnotic sedative. It was sold under the brand names Quaalude ( ) and Sopor among others, which contained 300 mg of methaqualone, and sold as a combination drug under the brand name Mandrax, which contained 250 mg me ...
and
cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
, as well as medicinal drugs such as
diazepam Diazepam, sold under the brand name Valium among others, is a medicine of the benzodiazepine family that acts as an anxiolytic. It is used to treat a range of conditions, including anxiety disorder, anxiety, seizures, alcohol withdrawal syndr ...
,
midazolam Midazolam, sold under the brand name Versed among others, is a benzodiazepine medication used for anesthesia, premedication before surgical anesthesia, and procedural sedation, and to treat psychomotor agitation, severe agitation. It induces ...
,
ketamine Ketamine is a cyclohexanone-derived general anesthetic and NMDA receptor antagonist with analgesic and hallucinogenic properties, used medically for anesthesia, depression, and pain management. Ketamine exists as its S- (esketamine) a ...
, suxamethonium and
tubocurarine Tubocurarine (also known as ''d''-tubocurarine or DTC) is a toxic benzylisoquinoline alkaloid historically known for its use as an arrow poison. In the mid-1900s, it was used in conjunction with an anesthetic to provide skeletal muscle relaxat ...
, as potential incapacitating agents. According to the testimony given by Wouter Basson to the
Truth and Reconciliation Commission A truth commission, also known as a truth and reconciliation commission or truth and justice commission, is an official body tasked with discovering and revealing past wrongdoing by a government (or, depending on the circumstances, non-state ac ...
, analogues of the compounds were prepared and studied. Both methaqualone and MDMA (along with the deliriant BZ) were manufactured in large quantities and successfully weaponised into a fine dust or aerosol form that could be released over a crowd as a potential riot control agent. It was later discovered that Basson was also selling large quantities of MDMA and methaqualone as tablets on the black market. The amount manufactured was far larger than what was sold, but the court accepted that at least some genuine weaponisation and testing of the agents had been done. A
black mamba The black mamba (''Dendroaspis polylepis'') is a species of highly venomous snake belonging to the family Elapidae. It is native to parts of sub-Saharan Africa. First formally species description, described by Albert Günther in 1864, it is ...
and its extracted venom were also part of the research, as were '' E. coli'' O157:H7 bacteria genetically modified to express some of the toxins made by ''
Clostridium perfringens ''Clostridium perfringens'' (formerly known as ''C. welchii'', or ''Bacillus welchii'') is a Gram-positive, bacillus (rod-shaped), anaerobic, spore-forming pathogenic bacterium of the genus '' Clostridium''. ''C. perfringens'' is ever-present ...
'' bacteria. A list of purchases at RRL and other documents include references to such things as the snake, biological agents such as
anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis'' or ''Bacillus cereus'' biovar ''anthracis''. Infection typically occurs by contact with the skin, inhalation, or intestinal absorption. Symptom onset occurs between one ...
,
brucellosis Brucellosis is a zoonosis spread primarily via ingestion of raw milk, unpasteurized milk from infected animals. It is also known as undulant fever, Malta fever, and Mediterranean fever. The bacteria causing this disease, ''Brucella'', are small ...
,
cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...
and
salmonella ''Salmonella'' is a genus of bacillus (shape), rod-shaped, (bacillus) Gram-negative bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae. The two known species of ''Salmonella'' are ''Salmonella enterica'' and ''Salmonella bongori''. ''S. enterica'' ...
among others, and chemicals including aluminium phosphide, thallium acetate,
sodium azide Sodium azide is an inorganic compound with the formula . This colorless salt is the gas-forming component in some car airbag systems. It is used for the preparation of other azide compounds. It is highly soluble in water and is acutely poisonou ...
,
sodium cyanide Sodium cyanide is a compound with the formula Na C N and the structure . It is a white, water-soluble solid. Cyanide has a high affinity for metals, which leads to the high toxicity of this salt. Its main application, in gold mining, also expl ...
, mercury oxycyanide, cantharides,
colchicine Colchicine is a medication used to prevent and treat gout, to treat familial Mediterranean fever and Behçet's disease, and to reduce the risk of myocardial infarction. The American College of Rheumatology recommends colchicine, nonstero ...
, powerful
anticoagulant An anticoagulant, commonly known as a blood thinner, is a chemical substance that prevents or reduces the coagulation of blood, prolonging the clotting time. Some occur naturally in blood-eating animals, such as leeches and mosquitoes, which ...
s such as
brodifacoum Brodifacoum is a highly lethal 4-Hydroxycoumarins, 4-hydroxycoumarin vitamin K antagonist anticoagulant poison. In recent years, it has become one of the world's most widely used pesticides. It is typically used as a rodenticide, but is also used ...
, phenylsilatranes,
strychnine Strychnine (, , American English, US chiefly ) is a highly toxicity, toxic, colorless, bitter, crystalline alkaloid used as a pesticide, particularly for killing small vertebrates such as birds and rodents. Strychnine, when inhaled, swallowed, ...
,
paraquat Paraquat ( trivial name; ), or ''N'',''N''′-dimethyl-4,4′-bipyridinium dichloride (systematic name), also known as methyl viologen, is a toxic organic compound with the chemical formula C6H7N)2l2. It is classified as a viologen, a family o ...
, " knockout drops",
digoxin Digoxin (better known as digitalis), sold under the brand name Lanoxin among others, is a medication used to treat various heart disease, heart conditions. Most frequently it is used for atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, and heart failure. ...
,
acetylcholinesterase inhibitor Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChEIs) also often called cholinesterase inhibitors, inhibit the enzyme acetylcholinesterase from breaking down the neurotransmitter acetylcholine into choline and acetate, thereby increasing both the level an ...
s such as aldicarb and paraoxon and other poisons. Other plans referenced in the UN report included crowd control with pheromones, and discussion of the development of several novel compounds, including a locally produced variant of BZ, novel derivatives of
CR gas CR gas or dibenzoxazepine (chemical name dibenz 'b'',''f''1,4]oxazepine, is an incapacitating agent and a lachrymatory agent. CR was developed by the British Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence as a riot control agent in t ...
including "a compound which had a pyridine moiety in place of one of the benzene rings... ndcaused severe blisters on the skin", a new, more potent analogue of methaqualone and a "dimethylketone-amphetamine" derivative of MDMA. Another unusual project attempted to develop a method of sterilising crowds using a known male sterilant,
pyridine Pyridine is a basic (chemistry), basic heterocyclic compound, heterocyclic organic compound with the chemical formula . It is structurally related to benzene, with one methine group replaced by a nitrogen atom . It is a highly flammable, weak ...
. That was to be sprayed onto the crowds from a gas cylinder pressurised with nitrogen gas, since pyridine is highly flammable. A subsequent industrial accident caused the death of a gas company employee when the experimental contaminated medical oxygen cylinder had been returned to the gas supplier and filled with oxygen that exploded.


Employment

In 1985, four
SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO ; , SWAVO; , SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former independence movement in Namibia (formerly South West Africa). Founded in 1960, it has been ...
detainees held at Reconnaissance Regiment headquarters were allegedly given a sleeping drug in soft drinks, taken to Lanseria International Airport northwest of
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...
, and injected with three toxic substances supplied by Basson. Their bodies were thrown into the
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
. The Civil Cooperation Bureau operative Petrus Jacobus Botes, who claimed to have also directed bureau operations in
Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...
and
Swaziland Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where ...
, asserted that he was ordered in May 1989 to contaminate the water supply at Dobra, a refugee camp in
Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...
, with
cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...
and yellow fever organisms. An SADF doctor provided them to him. In late August 1989, he led an attempt to contaminate the water supply, but it failed because of the high chlorine content in the treated water at the camp.


Component of genocide

Research on
birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth control only be ...
methods to reduce the black birth rate was one such area. Goosen, the managing director of Roodeplaat Research Laboratories between 1983 and 1986, told Tom Mangold of the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
that Project Coast had supported a project to develop a contraceptive that would have been applied clandestinely to blacks. Goosen reported that the project had developed a 'vaccine' for males and females, and that the researchers were still searching for a means by which it could be delivered to make black people sterile without them being made aware. Schalk van Rensburg stated that “fertility and fertility control studies comprised 18% of all projects”. Testimony given at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission suggested that Project Coast researchers were also looking into putting birth control substances in water supplies. The project officer for Project Coast, Basson, was put on trial for 64 charges, all of which were committed while he held that position. Goosen testified that when asked what motivated him, Basson had replied that "although we do not have any doubt that black people will take over the country one day, when my daughter asks me what I did to prevent this, at least my conscience will be clean". Despite strong links to
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
and
Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
, no country has been directly implicated for involvement in the project, however, the project would not have been able to develop without some form of international support. According to Miles Jackson, while the focus on apartheid South Africa’s research into fertility is barely part of the ongoing discussion regarding Project Coast, what occurred could constitute conspiracy to commit genocide under international law.


See also

* Medical experimentation in Africa * South Africa and weapons of mass destruction


References


Further reading

* Glenn Cross, ''Dirty War: Rhodesia and Chemical Biological Warfare, 1975–1980'', Helion & Company, 2017


External links


Chandré Gould, Peter I. Folb: Project Coast: Apartheid's Chemical and Biological Warfare Programme, United Nations Publications, 2002
on-line version of the book
Helen E. Purkitt, Stephen F. Burgess: The Rollback of South Africa's Chemical and Biological Warfare Program, 2001
on-line version of the book *
Public Broadcasting Service The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the ...
special report
Plague War: What Happened in South Africa?

Apartheid government sought germs to kill blacks




on-line article containing extensive documentation on Project Coast {{Authority control Abandoned military projects of South Africa Apartheid government Biological warfare Biological weapons by country Chemical weapons by country Human subject research in South Africa Medical experimentation on prisoners of war Military history of South Africa Military projects South Africa and weapons of mass destruction South African war crimes South African Border War