South Africa: The Rise And Fall Of Apartheid May 2026

: Nelson Mandela and other top ANC leaders were sentenced to life in prison in 1964.

Apartheid (meaning "apartness" in Afrikaans ) was a formal system of institutionalized racial segregation and white minority rule in South Africa that lasted from . While racial discrimination existed in South Africa for centuries under Dutch and British colonial rule, the 1948 election of the National Party (NP) codified these practices into rigid, all-encompassing laws. The Rise of Apartheid (1948–1960s)

Resistance grew in tandem with oppression, led by groups like the and the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) . South Africa: The Rise and Fall of Apartheid

: Global boycotts, trade embargoes, and economic sanctions from countries like the U.S. and UK crippled the South African economy.

By the late 1980s, the system was becoming unsustainable due to a combination of factors: : Nelson Mandela and other top ANC leaders

: Non-whites were required to carry "passes" (internal passports) to enter or work in white-only areas; failure to produce one resulted in immediate arrest.

: The Population Registration Act of 1950 classified all citizens into four groups: White, Black (Bantu), Coloured (mixed race), and Indian/Asian. The Rise of Apartheid (1948–1960s) Resistance grew in

: Ongoing strikes, township revolts, and the work of the United Democratic Front (UDF) made the country nearly ungovernable.