Leaflet for the launch of the Non-Stop Picket, 19 April 1986 (Source: City Group)

The Non-Stop Picket of the South African Embassy started on 19 April 1986. The proposal for the Non-Stop Picket had been made at the City of London Anti-Apartheid Group’s Annual General Meeting in January of that year and plans for the launch event had quickly gathered pace.  A few days before the launch, on 15 April, the US bombed Tripoli in Libya and many core activists feared the protests against the American military action might detract from their plans to launch the Non-Stop Picket.