Apartheid Flashcards
Outline the political issues in South Africa in 1960.
National Party (Dutch Afrikaners) implement system of apartheid in 1948
- legitimising racial segregation despite being the minority
- Africans no longer have the right to vote, possess land, perceived as inferior
Anti-apartheid groups (e.g. ANC, PAC) emerge - little to no political voice or power
Outline the economic issues in South Africa in 1960.
Deep economic inequality - black population’s average income was less than 10% of the white population
Africans confined to reserves –> Afrikaners required cheap labour for low-tier, more dangerous jobs (e.g. mining) –> creation of pass laws (severely restricted movement) + Afrikaners exploited Africans labour to maximise their profits –> poor conditions
Outline the social and demographic issues in South Africa in 1960.
Population breakdown: Africans 68.3%, Whites 19.3%, Coloured 9.4%
Pass laws - severely restricted movement, all aspects of life controlled
Townships (settlements for Black Africans on the edge of urban areas to live as they worked) - unsanitary and overcrowded
Discrimination - from 1948 they couldn’t vote, were dispossessed of land, viewed as inferior, kept racially segregated from whites
Outline the ideology of apartheid.
No clear blueprint for Apartheid ideology, based on white superiority over other races, elimination of miscegenation, belief as a fair and just system and traditional principles of guardianship
White superiority underpinned all of apartheid ideology - believed they had a right to govern and control other races
Biblical justification: believed god had created different races with the intention of keeping them apart
Miscegenation, or mixing races: believed that if races were mixed, the white race would be destroyed –> separation through apartheid was necessary
Fair and just system as they believed they were tasked with guardianship over the other races - apartheid was a way of treating the races fairly, responsibility to guard and protect through separation
Sought Afrikaner domination as they pursued the formation of a republic and severing of ties with Britain
Outline the main features/policy of apartheid - implementing Apartheid and strengthening the National Party.
Define: apartheid referred to the policy of separating races in all aspects of life.
Introduced in 1948 by the National Party (comprised of Dutch Afrikaners)
TWO MAIN AIMS: enforce and protect white superiority through an all-encompassing system of separation AND sever political ties with Britain
- Suppression of Communism Act 1950: SA Communist Party banned –> arrest of political individuals hostile to the apartheid regime
- Created six more seats in Namibia where residents were expected to vote for nationalists —> doubled no. of seats the party was entitled to –> ensure majority in parliament
- Separate Representation of Voters Act 1951 - abolished coloured peoples right to vote (Africans never had the right)
What are the four categories of impacts on urban and rural communities?
- Daily life and freedoms
- Housing/living areas
- Education
- Economic
How did apartheid affect urban and rural communities in regards to daily life and freedoms?
Micro-level inconveniences under petty apartheid
- Reservation of Separate Amenities Act 1953 - separate facilities and public services
Required to carry a passbook under the Pass Laws Act 1952 (criminal offence not to carry it)
- Allowed the gov to monitor and control their daily movements and activities
Those caught breaking the law could be imprisoned, whipped and/or fined (whites punished much less harshly)
Outline the policy/features of apartheid - grand apartheid.
Grand apartheid: overall system of keeping races separate
- Group Areas Act 1950: living in separate areas, subject to forced removal
- Immorality Amendment Act 1950: sex between people of different races made illegal
- Population Registration Act 1950: people were classified as white, asian, coloured or black african
Outline the policy/features of apartheid - petty apartheid.
Petty apartheid: day to day restrictions such as different public amenities and transport waiting rooms
- Reservation of Separate Amenities Act 1953 - public spaces and services separated
- many found this more wearying
How would you structure a response on the features/policy of apartheid?
Define Implemented in 1948 by the national party 2 Aims Strengthening the National Party Grand Apartheid Petty Apartheid
How did apartheid affect urban and rural communities in regards to housing and living areas?
Group Areas Act 1950: allowed the government to forcibly move citizens to designated living areas
- Led to the forcible eviction and relocation of more than 3.5 million Africans between 1951-86
Sophiatown: one of the only urban areas where Africans were allowed to own property
- More than 70% of buildings considered slums
- overcrowded and unsanitary
How did apartheid affect urban and rural communities in regards to education?
Syllabus focused on enforcing white superiority over the inferior Black and coloured races
Bantu Education Act 1953: mission schools (run by churches for blacks) had to be handed over to the government or receive decreased subsidies
- Many forced to close due to lack of funding
Many parents did not send their children to school as they didn’t want them being taught of white superiority –> low education and literacy rates –> few economic opportunities
How did apartheid affect urban and rural communities in regards to economic opportunities?
Limited to unskilled jobs often with dangerous working conditions e.g. mining
Bantu Authorities Act 1951: emphasised that Africans had no place in South Africa and were only used as a source of cheap labour
- Required permission from the government to look for work
How did apartheid affect specifically urban communities?
More crowded and unsanitary, as Africans were forced to live in squalid slums such as Sophiatown
What does the verb “account” mean?
State reasons for
Outline the nature of the ANC. (4 points)
ANC was made up of more educated members (middle-class) and racially diverse (coloured, Indians, Africans, whites)
- Integrationist approach
- All races had an equal role to play in a post-apartheid society
Supported the Freedom Charter - worked together with SAIC (SA Indian Congress) and CPSA
- Equal rights for all people
Peaceful resistance: policy of civil disobedience
- Resist apartheid through non-cooperation
- 1946 miner’s strike: 100,000 on strike despite brutal repression
Youth League: sought a broader organisation with mass support
- Direct action rather than passive protest and discussion
- Emphasised the community-based culture of Africans
What are the origins of the PAC?
Breakaway group from the ANC
- Founded by Robert Sobukwe who called on ANC to look after African interests first but was forced out of the ANC
What are the similarities between the ANC and PAC?
Both sought to overturn apartheid
Both primarily made up of black South Africans
Both turned to violent means through offshoot groups such as the MK and Poqo
Outline the nature of the PAC. (5 points)
Rejected Freedom Charter
- Rejected equality of all groups, advocated for Pan-Africanism → perceived white people as the enemy and aimed for their total expulsion from South Africa
PAC refused to work with other non-African groups, as they saw the fight for liberation as exclusively a black African cause - worked insularly without collaboration - Made up entirely of Africans, generally more impoverished, lower-class members
Pursued same anti-colonialism movements as those throughout Africa in the liberation of SA
More inclined to use violence
- Strikes and demonstrations in which public anger could be vented - led to tragedies such as the Sharpeville Massacre
Events were often more disorganised and devolved into chaos
Describe the MK. (4 points)
Mandela co-founded the military branch of the ANC
Conduct acts of sabotage on government installations whilst avoiding loss of life
Emphasis placed on MK being independent of the ANC although affiliated (ANC still anti-violence)
Later adopted more violent forms of resistance → Train volunteers for guerilla warfare
Describe Poqo.
Military arm of PAC - most violent faction, willing to use terror and intimidation
Targeted white people, African policemen and local chiefs
- E.g. assault on the white settlement of Paarl in 1962 Hacked two young white people to death
What was the impact of the PAC?
Short term, big devastation, led to a lot of tightened restrictions from the National Party
What was the impact of the ANC?
Long term, political structural change → dismantling of apartheid
Outline 4 examples of resistance up until 1960.
ANC, PAC, MK, Poqo
Outline three other examples of resistance up until 1960.
African Resistance Movement (ARM): off-shoot of the white liberal party
- increasingly liberal
Soweto Uprising
Black Conciousness Movement
How did the ANC contribute to the growth of the anti-Apartheid movement? (linked to nature, growth and impact)
Fostered anti-apartheid sentiment, gave opposers a means of resisting, its integrationist nature meant anyone could participate
How would you structure a response to the question - How significant was the Sharpeville Massacre in catalysing national resistance to apartheid (8 marks)?
- What was it
- Initial oppression
- Shift to violent resistance
- Increased government repression
- International response
How significant was the Sharpeville Massacre in catalysing national resistance to apartheid - Opening.
Turning point during apartheid, highlighting the futility of peaceful resistance and the brutality of the white government.
21 March 1960
- Killing 69 blacks and wounding more than 180 people –> revealed the cruel and brutal nature of the government
How significant was the Sharpeville Massacre in catalysing national resistance to apartheid - Initial repression.
State of emergency announced one week later –> police arrested over 100,000 people including Nelson Mandela
- ANC and PAC declared unlawful under the Unlawful Organisations Act 1960
- Removed the principle of legitimate voices in Africa as protesting became illegal
- Severely restricting the rights of African people, outlawing their main forms of resistance and exposing the corrupt and brutal nature of the government
When was Sharpeville Massacre?
21st March 1960
How significant was the Sharpeville Massacre in catalysing national resistance to apartheid - Shift to violence.
Marked the ANC’s and PAC’s shift towards more violent resistance - deaths of peaceful protestors highlighted the ineffectiveness of passive resistance
- MK and Poqo, the military wings of the ANC and PAC, as well as the Liberal Party began campaigns of bombing and violence, particularly against institutions that enforced apartheid
How significant was the Sharpeville Massacre in catalysing national resistance to apartheid - Increased repression.
Also led to increased government control
- Sabotage Act 1962: introduced the death penalty for all acts of sabotage and allowed security forces to use torture to extract confessions
- General Laws Amendment Act 1963: allowed authorities to arrest anyone for 90 days without charge, and detention could be extended indefinitely
How significant was the Sharpeville Massacre in catalysing national resistance to apartheid - International response.
Enraged international stage
- Prospect of isolation as several countries severed ties with SA
- Brain drain: higher rates of emigration than immigration
- UN Security Council: passed a resolution condemning the SA government and depending them to end apartheid
What are your bare minimum facts for impacts of the Sharpeville Massacre?
Killing 69 blacks and wounding more than 180
After one week a state of emergency was announced –> arrest of over 10,000 individuals including Nelson Mandela
Unlawful Organisations Act 1960
Sabotage Act 1962
General Laws Amendment Act 1963
