Reagan Imposes Limited Sanctions : Orders S. Africa Curbs to Prevent Stiffer Measures

Under mounting political pressure, President Reagan on Monday ordered a series of economic sanctions against the white-minority government of South Africa in a move to head off stricter measures that had seemed certain to be ordered by Congress.

But in signing an executive order that spells out new steps to bring pressure against the South African government’s systematic racial discrimination, Reagan reiterated his commitment to a U.S. policy of “constructive engagement” with the controversial Pretoria regime.

To emphasize the point, he sent U.S. Ambassador Herman W. Nickel back to his post in the South African capital to deliver a personal letter spelling out U.S. views to President Pieter W. Botha. Nickel was summoned to Washington three months ago to protest South African actions and policies.

‘Machinery of Apartheid’

Reagan called the new steps that he mandated “a set of measures designed and aimed against the machinery of apartheid, without indiscriminately punishing the people who are victims of that system.”

These steps will, he said, “disassociate the United States from apartheid but associate us positively with peaceful change.”

Asked whether, in light of the measures he approved, he is still following a policy of “constructive engagement,” the President said, “You might add the word active to constructive, but yes, . . . it’s similar to what we’ve been doing in the past.”

The Administration’s announcement gained it at least a little time in its looming confrontation with Congress. Later Monday, Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.)--who earlier predicted that an Administration veto of congressional sanctions would be overridden--led a move to temporarily bottle up House-passed legislation that would impose economic sanctions on South Africa.

Senatorial Vows

Democrats and Senate liberals, however, immediately vowed to continue their drive for the sanctions--with another Senate vote scheduled Wednesday. And, in the test of wills with Congress that has continued for weeks, Reagan’s action Monday was widely viewed as a loss for the President because he ended up imposing a list of penalties that largely parallels--though in milder form--the sanctions contained in the legislation that he had repeatedly vowed to veto.

Reagan’s executive order calls for:

--Negotiations with the United States’ major trading partners toward banning importation of gold Krugerrand coins, which are major earners of foreign exchange for South Africa.

--A ban on loans to the Pretoria government except those for educational, housing or health care facilities accessible to members of all races and those to create economic opportunities to South Africans disadvantaged by apartheid.

--A ban on U.S. computer sales to South African government agencies involved in the enforcement of apartheid policies.

--A ban on the export of nuclear materials or technology, except for use in the protection of health and safety or for use in implementing international agreements controlling nuclear proliferation.

--Withdrawal of export assistance from American firms in South Africa that fail to adhere to comprehensive fair employment practices by the end of this year.

At the same time, the President said he is urging American companies operating in South Africa to comply with an employment code authored by the Rev. Leon Sullivan, a black Philadelphia minister and longtime civil rights activist. The Sullivan code’s provisions include a ban on racial discrimination and a requirement that companies improve the working and living conditions of South African blacks and provide them with training for supervisory jobs.

More Scholarships

In addition, Reagan ordered an increase in scholarship money available to disadvantaged South African students, directed Secretary of State George P. Shultz to establish a committee to recommend measures for peaceful change in South Africa and told the Treasury Department to study the feasibility of minting a U.S. gold coin to replace the Krugerrand.

Despite the major public relations effort that accompanied the announcement, Administration officials acknowledged that the measures contain little that is new.

“Some of these measure are in effect now and are being codified,” Shultz told reporters at the White House. “For example, there are prohibitions on sales of nuclear materials, since South Africa has not signed the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty.” Sources also noted that sales of Krugerrands in the United States, which had been running at $500 million a year, already have dropped dramatically.

The split between the Administration and Congress developed after the South African government declared a state of emergency and cracked down on political activities by blacks earlier this year. It widened when the South African government failed to go forward with reforms that it had hinted were on the way.

Dole-Regan Meeting

But the Administration’s retrenchment and decision to go forward with its own measures occurred only last Friday, after Dole met with White House Chief of Staff Donald T. Regan.

After that meeting, Dole said, “It seemed to me that the South Africa bill . . . would be adopted with a large vote.” But he added, “If the President would implement some of the proposals in the bill, perhaps a veto might be sustained.”

Administration officials said that Monday’s executive order was not offered beforehand in exchange for postponement of congressional action on sanctions. But even before the President’s announcement, Dole had indicated that he would move to postpone a final vote on the sanctions bill until next spring.

One major difference between Reagan’s executive order and the congressional sanctions concerned Krugerrands. Congress would unilaterally ban importation of the gold coins, while the Administration plans first to consult with its partners in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade with a view toward banning imports of the coins.

More objectionable to the Administration, and something not included in the steps announced Monday, is a feature of the congressional measure that would impose additional economic sanctions after a year unless Congress and the Administration agree that South Africa has made progress in eight categories related to human and political rights.

‘Extraordinary Threat’

Monday’s action was taken under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. In line with the act, Reagan declared that the situation in South Africa constitutes “an unusual and extraordinary threat to the foreign policy and economy of the United States.”

“The pace of reform in South Africa has not fulfilled the expectations of the world community, nor the people of South Africa,” the President said in his formal notification to Congress.

Administration officials said that the executive order was aimed at dealing with the crisis in a more flexible way than would be possible under sanctions written into law.

Shultz characterized the steps as an effort “to send a single message to the government of South Africa . . . that apartheid must come to an end, and (that) we look to the government of South Africa to work with blacks, black leaders and others in their country to bring it to an end.”

Asked about circumstances that would cause him to lift the sanctions announced Monday, President Reagan told reporters, “I think you have to see the intent and see whether the steps are being taken in a forthright manner, or whether there is some trying to give in here and there. . . . So let us just wait and see what happens.”

Responding to questions by reporters, the President said that the measures he had ordered should not be considered sanctions--”not in the sense of the economic kind of sanctions that the bill (in Congress) called for and, as I said, would have hurt (South Africa’s) economy.”