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Natives Land Act No.27
The Natives Land Act of 1913 prohibited Africans from owning or renting land outside of certain territory designated as native reserves despite the fact that Africans constituted 2/3 of the South African population. The Act was passed for the purpose of allocating approximately 7.5 percent of arable land to Africans while leaving the considerably more fertile land for white usage. Furthermore, the terms of tenure under which blacks could live on white-owned farms were restricted. -
The Native (Urban Areas) Act of 1923
The Natives Act of 1923 proclaimed urban areas in South Africa as “white” and required all blacks to carry permits if they were in the designated urban areas. This Act imposed authoritative responsibility on white government officials of the area to regulate the black population. Additionally, native advisory boards regulated and removed surplus people (those who were not employed in the area). -
Industrial Conciliation Act of 1924
The Industrial Conciliation Act of 1924 prohibited the registration of new multi-racial unions and imposed racially separate branches and all-white executive committees on existing multi-racial unions. The Act specified that multi-racial trade unions had to have racially exclusive membership (trade union for only one race) or to divide the union into racial divisions. -
Wage Act of 1925
The Wage Act established a Wage Board which created a standard minimum wage for workers not covered by industrial councils. The main benefactors of this Act were whites in the job market because as poor whites moved to the towns and cities that, the only work they were capable of doing was unskilled labor. However, Africans were usually used for unskilled labor as their wage rate was significantly cheaper. To ensure protection from black competition, the “civilized labor policy” was introduced. -
Mines and Works Amendment 1926
The Mines and Works Amendment of 1926 reserved certain jobs in mining and the railway for white workers. This amendment legally established South Africa’s employment “color bar.” Only whites would be allowed to obtain the certificates of competence required to be engine drivers or boiler attendants. Other discrimination took the form of employing only whites in specified occupations, such as blasting, driving engines, supervising boilers and other machinery, or as shift boss or mine overseer. -
The Slums Act of 1934
The Slums Act of 1934 was aimed at improving conditions in locations. However, the Act actually expropriated Indian and black property and enforced the demolishing of slums with the ultimate goal of segregation. The Slums Act of 1934 significantly eroded residential opportunities for minorities especially in Johannesburg. The extensive removal highlighted the mechanism of urban segregation under slum provisions. -
Representative Natives Act of 1936
The Cape province had a qualified franchise which allowed a small number of blacks in the Cape to vote for the common role (not sit in Parliament) in terms of the Cape Qualified Franchise. The qualified franchise dated back to the pre-Union period – the time when the Cape was a British colony. The Representative Natives Act of 1936 removed blacks to a separate poll and halted the right to run for office. -
Native Trust and Land Act of 1936
The Native Trust and Land Act of 1936 extended native reserves from approximately 7% of South Africa to 13%. However, the Natives Trust and Land Act enhanced eviction powers. This Act served as the reorganization of its agricultural studies. The black population accounted for about 61% of the total population and the ratio of people to the amount of land prescribed under this act was significantly low. -
The Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act of 1949
The Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act was an apartheid law that prohibited marriages and sexual relations between people of different races. This Act was among the first pieces of apartheid legislation to be passed following the National Party’s rise to power in 1948. South Africans were required to register as either white, black, Indian, or colored and by using these categories, the apartheid government criminalized marriages between people of different racial groups. -
Population Registration Act of 1950
After the passage of the Population Registration Act of 1950, a race classification board was created to apply legislation. This Act required that inhabitants of South Africa register in accordance to his or her racial characteristics as a part of the apartheid system. This Act clearly defined each person to a race and issued identity cards to registered persons. This Act was an essential component of apartheid as it was the division and classification of racial groups in South Africa.
