Apartheid and South African Human Rights Violations
Quote: "I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons will live together in harmony with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for, and to see realised. But my Lord, if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." - Nelson Mandela
The Apartheid
The all-white National Party comes to power in South Africa in 1948.
An apartheid (separate or apart) was one of their main plans and high on their agenda.
A doctrine of white supremacy and separate development
South Africans who were non-white could no longer:
-Marry outside of their own race
-Choose where to live
-Travel where they liked
The whites made up 15% of the population yet owned 87% of the land
People who were non-whites were forced to live on Bantustans
These laws were enforced by the army and the police force.
The end of the Apartheid
In 1978 Prime Minister P.W. Botha of South Africa made reforms with the non-white people of South Africa and blacks could marry whom they pleased, mix in certain places and join unions.
There were many external reasons. In 1985 Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney urged the Americans to impose limited sanctions. Botha responded by restricting the freedom of the foreign press. The British Commonwealth called for sanctions against South Africa but the threats were quite hollow and Great Britain didn't actually join.
There were also many internal reasons for the end of the apartheid. The resistance movements were beginning to call for revolutions. Trade unions had won the right to bargain and therefore began protesting the apartheid. The economy of South Africa was also taking a turn for the worse. Then the Dutch Reformed Church began to oppose the concept of apartheid. Finally in 1990 Nelson Mandela was released from prison and then in 1994 was elected president in the democratic election where all races were able to vote.
Summary: The apartheid in South Africa lasted form 1948 to around 1990 1991. For a modern and largely western society a policy like this during this time period was rare. It wa also a case where the white minority were seen as superior to the non-white majority. It took years of resistance from within the country and a lack of support or the apartheid from other countries for the apartheid to finally come to an end.
Website Links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apartheid_in_South_Africa
http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~cale/cs201/apartheid.hist.html
Video:
The Apartheid
The all-white National Party comes to power in South Africa in 1948.
An apartheid (separate or apart) was one of their main plans and high on their agenda.
A doctrine of white supremacy and separate development
South Africans who were non-white could no longer:
-Marry outside of their own race
-Choose where to live
-Travel where they liked
The whites made up 15% of the population yet owned 87% of the land
People who were non-whites were forced to live on Bantustans
These laws were enforced by the army and the police force.
The end of the Apartheid
In 1978 Prime Minister P.W. Botha of South Africa made reforms with the non-white people of South Africa and blacks could marry whom they pleased, mix in certain places and join unions.
There were many external reasons. In 1985 Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney urged the Americans to impose limited sanctions. Botha responded by restricting the freedom of the foreign press. The British Commonwealth called for sanctions against South Africa but the threats were quite hollow and Great Britain didn't actually join.
There were also many internal reasons for the end of the apartheid. The resistance movements were beginning to call for revolutions. Trade unions had won the right to bargain and therefore began protesting the apartheid. The economy of South Africa was also taking a turn for the worse. Then the Dutch Reformed Church began to oppose the concept of apartheid. Finally in 1990 Nelson Mandela was released from prison and then in 1994 was elected president in the democratic election where all races were able to vote.
Summary: The apartheid in South Africa lasted form 1948 to around 1990 1991. For a modern and largely western society a policy like this during this time period was rare. It wa also a case where the white minority were seen as superior to the non-white majority. It took years of resistance from within the country and a lack of support or the apartheid from other countries for the apartheid to finally come to an end.
Website Links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apartheid_in_South_Africa
http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~cale/cs201/apartheid.hist.html
Video:
Question: How could an apartheid poilcy have lasted so long in a modern world where many inequalities had already been equalized?