Vital ANC meeting begins

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - The decision-making body of the African National Congress (ANC) yesterday began a vital three-day meeting that is expected to determine whether the group will seek an early return to negotiations on a new constitution for South Africa. The talks were broken off after the Boipatong massacre in June, the ANC accusing President F W de Klerk's government of negotiating in bad faith while the security forces fomented township violence.

An ANC spokesman, Carl Niehaus, said the meeting of the National Executive Committee was a regular event, due to finish late tomorrow. Sources close to the ANC said the meeting was expected to be tumultuous, with a fierce debate between regionally based hardliners and the more moderate national leadership.