-
Policy of Apartheid
Adopted when National Party (NP) takes power. -
Population classified by race
Areas Act passed to segregate blacks and whites. Communist Party banned. ANC responds with campaign of civil disobedience, led by Nelson Mandela. -
Declared republic
South Africa declared a republic, leaves the Commonwealth. Mandela heads ANC's new military wing, which launches sabotage campaign. -
more Deaths
More than 600 killed in clashes between black protesters and security forces during uprising which starts in Soweto. -
Meeting Mandela
FW de Klerk replaces PW Botha as president, meets Mandela. Public facilities desegregated. Many ANC activists freed. -
Anc unbanned
ANC unbanned, Mandela released after 27 years in prison. Namibia becomes independent. -
Mandela is released from prison
In the country's first election that allowed both whites and blacks to vote, Nelson Mandela is elected president of South Africa. He is the first black president in the history of South Africa. -
joe Slovo
In South Africa Joe Slovo, a former leader of the South Africa Communist party and white hero of the liberations struggle, died. He was born in Obeliai, Lithuania, to a Jewish family who emigrated to South Africa when he was eight. -
AAPC fires people
In South Africa the Anglo American Platinum Corp. fired an additional 7,000 striking workers. That makes the total 28,261 fired workers since the strike began June 25. -
Thebo Mbeki
President Thabo Mbeki was elected unopposed for a second term. He pledged to fight poverty and improve opportunities for all South Africans after his party scored its biggest victory yet in a decade of multiracial democracy. -
Thebo Mbeki speeck
In South Africa Thabo Mbeki gave his state of the nation speech. He called for faster economic growth and a quicker transfer of wealth from white to black pockets. -
Finance Ministers
In South Africa finance ministers from the world's largest 20 economies began talks focusing on reforming the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). -
Gold production
In South Africa gold production ground to a halt as the industry became the latest victim of a spiraling electricity crisis which the government labeled a national emergency. -
Trade union
South Africa’s biggest trade union called for President Jacob Zuma to resign and said it will not support the ANC in next year's elections. -
Government announcment
South Africa’s government said 32 people had died because of the rains over the past two weeks in the northern and eastern provinces of North West, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. The toll included 25 drownings and six people killed by lightning.
