A TALE OF TWO NATIONS PRETORIA CLAMPS DOWN; ORTEGA SIGNS CHARTER ADS TARGET OF CENSORS.(Main)

Byline: Combined wire services

The South African government Friday imposed severe new press restrictions, effectively prohibiting South African newspapers from reporting on the African National Congress, the main black guerrilla group battling minority white rule, and other banned organizations.

The move, which resulted from the publication in some newspapers Thursday of advertisements calling for the legalization of the congress, followed the effective expulsion of the New York Times' correspondent, Alan Cowell, who was ordered to leave the country today.

The Home Affairs Ministry also denied a visa and work permit for Cowell's successor, thereby suspending first-hand reporting in South Africa by the newspaper.

In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Phyllis Oakley called on the South African government to "reconsider this …