GEN VAN DER MERWE
Chairperson we consisted of HeadOffice in Pretoria, 20 divisions with divisional commanders andapproximately 110 branches which included the border posts acrossthe country.  At Head office we had various divisions dealingwith various aspects.  For instance there was a division dealingwith members of the Black population, all activities relatingto them.  The next division related to the other population groupsand there was also a division dealing with interrogation of arrestedpeople.  A further division dealing with the Vlakplaas Unit establishedin
3B 1970/...
79 GNL VAN DER MERWE
1970 and which was aimed in terms of people arrested, to tracecertain members of the MK of people who were entering the countryillegally.  There was also a division dealing with strategic communicationmatters.  
 The divisional commanders were responsible for their areas andwithin those areas he was quite independent subject to the PoliceAct and Regulations and Standing Orders, because we were all partof the South African Police and rules and regulations issued byheadquarters from time to time and also the security branch headquarters. Apart from these it was also the divisional commanding officer'sresponsibility that all security aspects within their areas weredealt with.  They also had to coordinate all the activities undertheir command according to the rules and regulations issued. But because security activities were of such a nature that youcould hardly issue regulations to deal with each and every incidentand situation a lot of discretion was left to these divisionalcommanders.
 I may also mention how they liaised with the existing managementsystem.  The State Security Council was the body, under the chairmanshipof the State President and this body coordinated all securitymatters of national interest and then there was also the jointmanagement structure which was later changed.  The managementsystem had joint management systems whereby the various managersof the information societies were all involved so that there wasan overall coordination of the safety and security position inthe country.