South Africa (apartheid) Flashcards
1
Q
Freedom Charter
A
- A document that would express the thinking of the Congress of the People about how South Africa must move forward to a non-racial future
- Failed to eliminate apartheid
- Form of resistance- government felt threatened
- Long term success- articulated vision
2
Q
Treason Trial
A
- After Freedom Charter
- December 1956- police arrested 156 people on charges of high treason (including Nelson Mandela and Albert Luthuli- president of ANC) and people of SAIC (of all races)
- Government claimed that the 156 people arrested were involved in a countrywide conspiracy to use violence to overthrow the present government and replace it with a communist government
- 4 year trial, many leaders isolated from each other
- Government failed to prove at the Treason Trial that the Freedom Charter was a communist document (or that the Congress Alliance was a communist organization)
- All accused were acquitted and could continue protests
3
Q
Nelson Mandela
A
- Helped to form MK
- Turned to violence in 1961 by using acts of sabotage against the government
- Jail for leaving the country without permission and for trying to overthrow the government
4
Q
PAC
A
- Pan Africanist Congress
- Emphasized black African unity
- Did not oppose violence/ willing to use violence
- Viewed Freedom Charter as a betrayal
- Refused to work with whites
- Felt that passive resistance did not put enough pressure on the government
- More aggressive
- Did not see a future for whites in South Africa
- Work with blacks
- Mass mobilization
5
Q
ANC
A
- African National Congress
- Worked on the Freedom Charter
- Led the Defiance Campaign
- Initially hoped to gain rights for black elite
- Embraced the policy of passive resistance
- Collaborated with other racial groups to accomplish goals
- Promoted the idea of civil disobedience
- Hated white oppression only
- Inclusive of everyone who wants to join
- Reject violence- like peaceful means
6
Q
SAIC
A
- Initially called the Natal Indian Congress
- South African Indian Congress
- Formed by Gandhi to organize Indians to demand basic human, political, and economic rights for the South Asian community
- Based on Gandhi’s idea of satyagraha (struggle for truth) as the root of a non-violent form of resistance against white discrimination
- By 1943- actively working to coordinate its efforts with the African and colored groups agitating for more rights
- Collaborated with ANC in late 1940s
7
Q
Pass laws
A
-Required all Black South Africans over the age of 16 to carry a passbook at all times
-Passes and Coordination of Documents Act:
-Pass laws increased- amount of information requires on passbooks- fingerprints, employment statistics, etc
-
8
Q
Group Areas Act (1950)
A
- Began the process of designating every inch of SA for 1 of the 3 official race groups
- Whites: 86% of land but only 20% of population
- Forced blacks who lived in urban areas to live in townships
- Commuted to jobs in white areas as gardeners, domestic servants, and factory workers
- Countryside»_space; migrate to city to find work, land not suitable for farming
- For further division, government forced many Africans not employed by whites to move from the townships to the country
9
Q
Prohibition of Mixed Marriages (1949)
A
Blacks and whites could not marry each other
10
Q
Population Registration Act (1950)
A
- Created 3 official races in SA to which all residents would be assigned: white, colored, and African
- Categorized in an attempt to divide and conquer
- Prevented communication among different African groups
11
Q
Criminal Law Amendment Act
A
- After Defiance Campaign
- High fines and up to three years in prison or flogging for violation of any law in protest against the government
- If normal violation punishment was fewer than three years + intent to protest law: bigger fines + punishment
- Government hoped to make the mass non-compliance strategy of the Defiance Campaign so costly that no one will try it in the future
- Make civil disobedience illegal
12
Q
Suppression of Communism Act (1950)
A
-Defined communism so broadly that any resistance to apartheid policies could be equated with Communism
-People could be banned from speaking publicly or meeting together
-
13
Q
Alexandra Bus Boycott (1957)
A
- Bus company proposed increase in bus fares
- Residents of. this Johannesburg township refused to ride busses- walked or rode bikes to work at white-owned businesses
- Worker productivity fell, profits of white businesses at stake
- Government finally forced businesses to help pay for bus transport to avoid the fare increase
- Africans learned that they could win concessions if they united to act in a way that threatened the profitability of the white economy
- Showed they would not be intimidated by Treason Trial
- Achieved primary objective: to reduce bus fare cost
14
Q
Sharpeville
A
- Township south of Johannesburg
- PAC protesting passbooks
- Small clashes with police, protesters had stones
- Police fires shots over the heads of protesters
- Protesters did not respond violently
- Crowd of 5,000 outside police station
- Policeman pushed over, police opened fire
- No orders given to disperse + no warning shots fired
- Police continued firing into the backs of fleeing protesters
- 69 dead, 186 wounded, including women and children
- Representative of the PAC lack of organization
- ANC turned to sabotage after
15
Q
Stay-at-home Campaigns
A
- Right after Sharpeville Massacre, PAC called for workers to stay home, government forces forced them to report to their jobs, led to more protests
- Later proposed by Chief Luthuli
- Also publicly burned passbooks
- After 3 weeks (in Cape Town area), brought business and industry to a standstill
16
Q
How did South Africa change in 1948? What were the roots of inequality leading up to this date?
A
- Nationalist Party (Afrikaners) elected to power
- The people elected believed the values of their early ancestors with the belief that they were the chosen people of god (after winning the battle of Blood River) responsible for directing humanity and committed to god’s plan of segregation
- Apartheid begins
17
Q
What is the difference between the Declaration of Human rights and the Statement of the National Party?
A
- DHR: states basic human rights, rights to everyone, not much power
- SNP: rights to white people, justification, sets a social hierarchy
18
Q
What options faced black Africans in 1960-1961?
A
1) Non-violent (SAIC)
2) Sabotage (ANC > MK)
3) Guerilla warfare (PAC > Poqo)
19
Q
Augie de Koker
A
20
Q
Braaveleis
A
- A traditional open-air barbecue
- A white cultural ritual
21
Q
Kaffir
A
-Racist, derogatory term for a black person
-
22
Q
What happened to Dennis Mosheshwe? What was his torturers’ punishment?
A
- Brutally tortured and killed in front of an audience of white people by Augie de Koker after his threatening/insulting of his significant other disrupted a Braavaleis at the home of Matthew Homan
- Augie got 7 years in prison, Matthew Homan got 3 months in prison and a 300 grand fine
23
Q
How did unequal treatment by the government translate into social interactions between people of different racial groups?
A
- Not as severe punishments for white people
- It was tense
- A black member got 10 years from holding pamphlets and literature to a banned organization
- Racial groups wanted equal treatment
- Blacks wanted justice»_space; violence broke out
