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1909- Act of Union
unified the British colonies of the Cape Colony, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange River -
1912- SANNC founded
The South African Native National Congress (SANNC), later known as the Africa National Congress (ANC) was founded on the 8 January 1912. -
1950- The Group Areas Act
Divided South Africa up into territories where the different race groups had to live. -
1948- NP wins the general election
Arguably the most important reason for election success however, was the number of rural voters which voted for the National Party in 1948. ... This allowed Malan to form a government by winning lots of small constituencies and gaining 5 more seats than the United Party in a narrow victory for the National Party. -
1949- The ANC Youth League Programme of Action was implemented by the ANC.
In 1944, Nelson Mandela and other young nationalists created the ANC Youth League. -
1949- Prohibition of marriages & Immorality Acts
Illegal for White South Africans to marry people of other races -
1950- Suppression of Communism Act
was legislation of the national government in apartheid South Africa which formally banned the Communist Party of South africa. -
1950- Population Registration Act
Required that very person be classified whitin a hierarchy as White, Asian, colored or Bantu -
1950- Stock limitation act
this "was presented by the state as a device for land betterment but its practical significance was the forced removal or slaughter of cattle belonging to african -
1950- Bantu self government/ authorities
was to give authority to Traditional Tribal Leaders within their traditional tribal homelands in South Africa. ... All political rights (including voting) held by Africans were restricted to the designated homeland. -
1950- May Day Strike (SACP)
▪ The ANC, SACP, ACPO co-ordinate a May Day strike.
▪ The police opened fire on the protesters killing 19 people and wounding 30 people. -
1950- National Day of Protest (ANC)
- On June 26 the ANC called for a general strike and a day of mourning in protest at the May day murders.
- This call was supported by the African colored People’s Organization and the South African Indian Congress.
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1951- Separate Representation of Voters Act
It sought to remove the Coloured voters from the common electoral rolls -
1952- Natives Resettlement Act
The authorities were now permitted to remove blacks forcibly -
1952- The Pass Laws
Enforcing segregation -
1952- The criminal law amendment act
Anyone speaking out against regime would be guilt of incitement -
1952- Defiance Campaign
against Unjust Laws was presented by the African National Congress (ANC) at a conference held in Bloemfontein, South Africa in December 1951. ... The demonstrations, taking place in 1952 were the first "large-scale, multi-racial political mobilization against apartheid laws under a common leadership." -
1953- The Public Safety Act
Empowered the government to declare states of emergency and increased penalties for protestors. -
1953- The Bantu Education Act
Provided an inferior and separate education for black children and youth -
1953- The Reservation of Separate Amenities Act
enforced segregation of all public facilities, including buildings, and transport, in order to limit contact between the different races in South Africa. The Act also stated that the facilities for different races did not need to be equal. -
1955- Freedom Charter Campaign (ANC)
The Freedom Charter united people of all racial origins in a common struggle to end apartheid and to establish a non-racial democratic state. It formed the basis of the country’s democratic Constitution of 1996. “South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white…we, the people of South Africa, black and white together equals, countrymen and brothers adopt this Freedom Charter”. -
1955- Congress of the People
The Congress of the People was held over two days in a field in Kliptown, just outside Johannesburg. Up to 7 000 people from all over the country attended from a wide range of anti-apartheid groups: The ANC, PAC, CD (Congress of the People– whites), SAIC (Indians), ACPO (coloureds), SACTU (Trade Unions), FASW (Federation of S. African Women). -
1956- The Women’s March (FASW)
The Women’s March: 20,000 ANC women marched to the Prime Minister’s office to deliver a petition calling for the abolition of the pass laws. Although Prime Minister Strijdom had been told about the march, he chose not to be at the Union Buildings on the day. The anti-pass campaign ultimately failed and, by the 1960s, millions of black women were forced to carry passes. -
1956- The Treason Trial
The Treason Trial was a trial in Johannesburg in which 156 people, including Nelson Mandela, were arrested in a raid -
1959- Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC) splinters away from the ANC
led by Robert Sobukwe, that broke away from the African National Congress (ANC), as the PAC objected to the ANC's "the land belongs to all who live in it both white and black" and also rejected a multiracialism worldview -
1961- ANC
Developed an armed wing called Umkhonto we Sizwe. Mandels set up a militant wing which launched a campaign sabotage against property -
1959- Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC) splinters away from the ANC
A group of radicalized activists split away from the ANC to form the PAC. They felt that the focus of the ANC was being lost through its compromises with non-Black organizations and that it was time to pursue a more vigorous “Africanist” campaign which would secure “Black Power” in Africa (“Africa is for Africans”). Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe was elected first chairman and Potlako Leballo as secretary. -
1960- Sharpeville Massacre
During a PAC demonstration against pass books in Sharpeville, the police opened fire, killing 69 black protestors. In March of 1960, 20,000 PAC-mobilized protesters left their homes without their passes and gathered in Sharpeville, a township in the Transvaal about 30 miles south of Johannesburg. The police responded by opening fire on the unarmed throng. During this assault, 69 Blacks were killed and another 186 were wounded, the majority of whom were hit in the back. -
1960- Government response to sharpeville massacre
The ANC/ PAc were outlawed due to protests in sharpeville. -
1961- Winds of Change
British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan’s delivered his “Winds of Change” speech, suggesting that Black nationalism was a force that had to be acknowledged and accepted. -
1961- Resolution 1598
UN Resolution 1598 condemns apartheid. -
PAC
Developed an armed wind called Pogo which launched a campaign of terrorism against indviduals. -
1961- Leaves british commonwealth
South Africa become a republic -
1962- Resolution 1761
UN Resolution 1761 encourages members "separately or collectively, in conformity with the charter" to break trade and diplomatic relations with South Africa. -
1963- The Rivonia Trial and Mandela’s “I Am Prepared to Die” speech
Ten leaders of the African National Congress were tried for 221 acts of sabotage designed to overthrow the apartheid system. -
1964- Formation of the African Resistance Movement (ARM)
On 24 July 1964, Frederick John Harris, a member of ARM, planted a time bomb in the
Johannesburg station.