Resistance, Boycott and the End of Apartheid, 1960–1994
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Flip to reveal answersWhat happened at Sharpeville on 21 March 1960?
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All 12 Flashcards — Resistance, Boycott and the End of Apartheid, 1960–1994
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Question
What happened at Sharpeville on 21 March 1960?
Answer
Police killed 69 people protesting pass laws; the government then banned the ANC and PAC, pushing resistance underground.
Question
Umkhonto we Sizwe
Answer
The ANC's armed wing, formed after Sharpeville, led early on by Nelson Mandela; targeted infrastructure and government buildings through sabotage.
Question
Why was Nelson Mandela imprisoned in 1964?
Answer
Convicted of sabotage at the Rivonia Trial for his role in Umkhonto we Sizwe; sentenced to life and sent to Robben Island.
Question
Steve Biko's central idea
Answer
Black Consciousness: psychological liberation (pride, unity, self-reliance) must come before political liberation.
Question
What triggered the Soweto Uprising of 16 June 1976?
Answer
A government policy forcing schools to teach half their lessons in Afrikaans; police killed protesting students, including 12-year-old Hector Pieterson.
Question
United Democratic Front (UDF)
Answer
Formed 1983; coordinated rent boycotts, school boycotts and protests across townships during the 1980s unrest.
Question
Name three forms of international pressure on apartheid South Africa
Answer
Sporting boycott (Olympic ban from 1964), trade/economic sanctions, and the 1977 UN arms embargo.
Question
Why did the economic boycott help end apartheid?
Answer
It shrank South Africa's economy and cut off foreign capital, pushing business leaders to demand reform to end isolation.
Question
What did De Klerk do on 2 February 1990?
Answer
Lifted the ban on the ANC, PAC and other organisations, and announced the release of political prisoners.
Question
CODESA
Answer
Convention for a Democratic South Africa; negotiations from December 1991 between the government, ANC and other parties over a new constitution.
Question
What made the 1994 elections significant?
Answer
South Africa's first democratic election open to all races; the ANC won and Mandela became the first Black president.
Question
Compare internal resistance and international pressure as causes of apartheid's end
Answer
Internal resistance (Sharpeville, Soweto, 1980s unrest) made the country ungovernable; international pressure (sanctions, boycotts) weakened the economy — together they created conditions for De Klerk and Mandela's negotiated transition.
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Topic 21.15 hub
Developments in South Africa 1880–1994
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