Faces of the Apartheid
Hendrik Verwoerd |
Pieter Willem Botha |
Hendrik Verwoerd (1901-1966) was the architect of the policy of apartheid in South Africa. He grew up in South Africa and was a professor & chair of sociology and social work at the University of Stellenbosch. When the National Party won the 1948 election, he was appointed senator. In 1950 he became minister of native affairs and started to promote harsher apartheid legislation. The laws Verwoerd enacted led to racially fueled demonstrations and massacres in the following years. Verwoerd was stabbed to death in 1966 by Demetrio Tsafendas, a temporary parliamentary messenger. Tsafendas was originally found to be insane and sent to a mental asylum, but later interviews revealed his motivation came from Verwoerd's harsh policies of apartheid.
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P.W. Botha (1916-2006) is known for his use of deadly force against anti-apartheid protestors as prime minister. Growing up, he was a youth organizer for the right-wing National Party. During World War II Botha also worked for the Ox Wagon Fire Guard, which had ties to the Nazi party. In 1948, he was elected to South Africa’s parliament. Botha became prime minister in 1978 and met global pressure to end apartheid with armed attacks in countries ANC activists had fled to and use the State Security Council to kill any dissenters within South Africa. He called South Africa into a national state of emergency in 1985 after multiple domestic protests, resulting in thousands of citizens being detained and abused by police.
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Nelson Mandela |
Frederik Willem de Klerk |
Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) is the most notable leader of the anti-apartheid movement. He became involved the anti-apartheid movement in his 20s and joined the ANC in 1942. He initially only partook in peaceful protests against the oppressive regime, but after the Sharpeville massacre Mandela founded the Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the ANC. Mandela was sentenced to life in prison in 1963. His arrest drew international attention to the anti-apartheid movement and helped it gain support from many facets. He was released from prison in 1990 after F.W. de Klerk became president, and the two worked together to eliminate the apartheid system. The presidential election in 1994 resulted in Mandela becoming the first black president of South Africa.
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F.W. de Klerk (1936-present) was the successor of P.W. Botha as president who worked tirelessly to reform South Africa and bring equality to the nation. De Klerk started his career in politics after being elected to Parliament for the National Party due to his active role in civic and business affairs in Vereeniging. His time as lawyer allowed him to easily gain respect, winning him a number of titles within the government, including leader of the House of Assembly. When Botha fell ill, de Klerk was elected leader of the National Party. De Klerk immediately began repealing policies of apartheid, including lifting the ban on the ANC and releasing all important political prisoners, like Nelson Mandela.
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