Apartheid Policies

Question 1

Mines and Works Act 1911

Answer 1

• Reserved specialised jobs in mining and railways for white workers.
• Allowed Governor General to suspend or cancel certificates of competency
• Prompted racial discrimination and racial hierarchy

Question 2

Mines and Works Amendment Act 1926

Answer 2

• Reinforced and extended discrimination against non-white labourers in mining.
  Impacts
• Wage gap, limited mobility (non-white workers couldn’t move up ranks), Non-white unionisation ban

Question 3

Native lands Act 1913

Answer 3

Key law which acted as the founding legislation of Apartheid systems.
- Native Reserves, Homelands
- Forced removals, Prohibition of land ownership
- Inequitable land distribution
Act was not fully dismantled until 1990’s and still have lasting consequences.

Question 4

Native Urban Areas Act 1923

Answer 4

Reinforced racial segregation enacted in Native Lands Act.
- Introduced Pass laws which controlled and restricted movements of non-white Africans

Question 5

Pass Laws

Answer 5

Non-white Africans were forced to carry passbooks. This would determines residential areas, work options, and accessibility to public facilities.

Question 6

South Africa during WWII

Answer 6

• Segregation policies were relaxed
• Black workers were given more job opportunities and higher ranked jobs
• Informal settlements were built, particularly near Johannesburg

Question 7

Post War South Africa

Answer 7

• Non-white workers launched resistance campaigns and strikes for better employment conditions.
• White Afrikaners concerned about preservation of white interest

Question 8

1948 Election

Answer 8

National Party promised Apartheid policies.
- Promoted Apartheid as solution to protect white Afrikaners from black population
United Party Government lost election for concerns over neglecting white interest

Question 9

Population Registration Act 1950

Answer 9

Fundamental to racial hierarchy during Apartheid
- Race classification in passbooks
- Identification tests, pencil test, colour of skin

Question 10

Group Areas Act 1950

Answer 10

Restricted residential areas to specific race groups in order to maintain segregation and white supremacy.
- Led to displacement of many people
[Sophiatown 1955]

Question 11

Immorality Act 1950

Answer 11

reinforcement of Prohibition of Mixed marriages act.
- criminalised any interracial marriages between two race groups

Question 12

Suppression of Communism Act 1950

Answer 12

This Act banned any anti-apartheid, ‘communist’ organisation
- CPSA became banned organisation as Apartheid government saw it as threat to their power.
- Suspected communists could be sentenced

Question 13

Bantu’s Authority Act 1951

Answer 13

Establishment of self-governing Bantu authority.
- Gave authority to black South Africans to govern their ‘homelands’
- tool for oppression

Question 14

Abolition of passes Act 1952

Answer 14

Abolished passbooks which were replaced with reference books.
- required African men to carry them at all times
- consisted of mostly the same information as a passbook

Question 15

Reservation of separate Amenities Act 1953

Answer 15

Legislation which made all social, educational, recreational places in public segregate by race.

Question 16

Bantu Education Act 1953

Answer 16

Limited education of black South Africans as they were ‘not to aspire to high social positions in society’.
- English was seen as too liberal
- Most classes were about native culture to establish the cultural boundary between the black Africans and the white Afrikaners

Question 17

Public Safety Act 1953

Answer 17

Legislation which allowed the government to declare a state of emergency at any time deemed worthy and rule by proclamation.
- act was targeted at anti-apartheid activists

Question 18

Native Resettlement Act 1954

Answer 18

Removed black South Africans from areas too close to Johannesburg.
Act was passed to remove coloured people from Sophiatown 1955.

Question 19

Separate Representation of Voters Act 1956

Answer 19

Act created to separate voters roll for white Afrikaners and black Africans.
- union council for coloured affairs
- white representative for coloured
Went from less political representation to limited voting rights

Question 20

Promotion of Bantu self-government 1959

Answer 20

Extension of Bantu Authorities Act of 1951.
Established 8 homelands with self government to lead to black South African independence.
- In order to maintain some authority government established Bantu investment Corporations Act so white corporations and independent entrepreneurs could develop establishments.

Question 21

Unlawful Organisation Act 1960

Answer 21

Created after the Sharpville Massacre to prevent strike or protest action. Enabling the banning of ANC and PAC organisations

Question 22

Sabotage Act 1962

Answer 22

90 day detention without trial was allowed if arrest was made for strike action or anything deemed to be ‘sabotage’
Vital in the events of the Rivonia Trials 1963.