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National Party Introduces Apartheid
The parliamentary election in South Africa on 26 May 1948 represented a turning point in the country's history, when the National Party came into power. Realizing that many White South Africans felt threatened by black political aspirations, pledged to implement a policy of strict racial segregation in all spheres of living if victorious. The Nationalists labelled this new system of government 'apartheid', the name by which it became universally - and infamously - known. -
Adoption of the Freedom Charter by the Congress of the People
On 26 June 1955 the Freedom Charter was adopted in Kliptown, bringing the ANC together with Indian, Coloured and White organisations. The Congress of the People was a dramatic affair held over two days in an open space at Kliptown, a Coloured township near Johannesburg. It was attended by 3 000 delegates from all over the country, including 320 Indians, 230 Coloureds and 112 Whites. The various clauses of the Charter were introduced, there was an opportunity for impromptu speeches from delegates -
Women's March Against the Pass Law
In one of the largest demonstrations staged in this country's history, 20 000 women of all races marched to Pretoria's Union Buildings on 9 August 1956, to present a petition against the carrying of passes by women to the prime minister, J G Strijdom. -
The Sharpsville Massacre
On 21 March 1960 at least 180 black Africans were injured (there are claims of as many as 300) and 69 killed when South African police opened fire on approximately 300 demonstrators, who were protesting against the pass laws, at the township of Sharpeville, near Vereeniging in the Transvaal. In similar demonstrations at the police station in Vanderbijlpark, another person was shot. Later that day at Langa, a township outside Cape Town, police baton charged and fired tear gas at the gathered prot -
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The Durban Strike
The Durban Strikes were a turning point in the confrontation between the country's minority rulers and the worker majority. Motivated by material need and underpinned by principles of democracy and equality, the strikes conjoined academics, workers and political leaders among others, in a struggle that was to redefine the South African political landscape in the years to follow. -
Student Uprising in Soweto
The Soweto Uprising, also known as June 16, is a series of protests led by high school students in South Africa that began on the morning of 16 June 1976. Students from numerous Sowetan schools began to protest in the streets of Soweto in response to the introduction of Afrikaans as the medium of instruction in local schools.An estimated 20,000 students took part in the protests. The number of people who died is usually given as 176, with estimates of up to 700. -
The Killing of Steven Biko by South Africcan Police
Stephen Bantu Biko (18 December 1946 – 12 September 1977) was an anti-apartheid activist in South Africa in the 1960s and 1970s.On 18 August 1977, Biko was arrested at a police roadblock under the Terrorism Act No 83 of 1967 and interrogated by officers of the Port Elizabeth security police.He died shortly after arrival at the Pretoria prison, on 12 September. The police claimed his death was the result of an extended hunger strike, but an autopsy revealed multiple bruises and abrasions. -
The Release of Nelson Mendela From Prison
23 years ago, Nelson Mandela was released from the South African prison where he'd been held for nearly 27 years.n August of 1962 Mandela was arrested, jailed and convicted of leaving the country illegally and inciting workers to strike. He was sentenced to five years in prison, where he remained through June 1964 when he was sentenced to life for his anti-apartheid engagement through the African National Congress -
The First Democratic Election
he South African general election of 1994 was an election held in South Africa to mark the end of apartheid, therefore also the first held with universal adult suffrage. The election was conducted under the direction of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).Millions queued in lines over a three-day voting period. Altogether 19,726,579 votes were counted and 193,081 were rejected as invalid.
