1. International Political Relations 7
Jan Brzozowski, PhD
Department of European Studies

2. South Africa: apartheid and racial discrimination
The history of Afrikaners
Origins of racial discrimination
The system of Apartheid
The impact of Cold War on South Africa
Dismantelment of apartheid and Rainbow Nation

3. The history of Afrikaners
While most of Western coloniallism and imperialism was carried out bu small elites, the South Africa case is somehow different. Afrikaner nation originates from a massive migration of European peasants (Boer) mostly from Netherlands and also from France, who arrived to Cape Colony, estabilished in mid 17th century by Dutch East India Company

4. The Afrikaneer colonists soon became much independent from Dutch East India Company and started to expand more to African inland, taking land by force from indigenous populations (mostly Khoisan and Xhosa tribes) Afrikaneer farmers known as Boers have formed large agricultural units with slave labour imported from Dutch colonies and other African regions. By late 18 century, in Cape Colony lived ca. 26,000 people of European descent and 30,000 slaves 1806 – British take control over Cape from Dutch. Soon they encouraged British settlement in the region – British administration abolishes slavery. The open conflict with Boers beginns.

5. Groot Trek (1835-1841) Boers migrate in masses northeast from Cape
They defeat Zulu (colapse of Zulu Kingdom) and take over their land
16 December 1838 – Battle of Blood River: ca. 500 trekkers able to defeat 10,000 to 12,000 Zulu warriors

6. Three independent boer states are created:
Natal – 1839
Transvaal
Orange Free State (1854)

7. Boer Wars (1880-1881 & 1899-1902): Afrikaneers defeated by British
Boer Wars ( & ): Afrikaneers defeated by British. Transvaal and Oranje incorporated into Union of South Africa, created in 1910.

8. Afrikaneer identity:
Strong sence of independence, oposition to British rule;
Religious conservatism;
Calvinis – predestination doctrine (reasoning for racial inequality);
Myth of the chosen nation, mission to civilize South Africa.

9. Coolies
Already in the late 19th century both Boers and British have introduced regulations which limited the freedoms of natives (Africans – both from South Africa and contract workers - coolies) and of Indians (also attracted to this region via coolie system). Coolies: indentured/contract workers recruited from Africa and India. Coolie system replaced slavery; the coolies transport costs were covered by the „owner”/employer, thus the recruited coolie had to work for a contracted time to repay this cost. Only after the contract expired, they were able to change job freely. Yet, the contracts were very long (very often 10 years and more)

10. Origins of racial segregation
Both Indians (people from Large India, currently India, Pakistan and Bangladesh) and Africans had been tied to their employers. In order to move, the employers had to issue special documents (later „passports”). Paradoxically, old enemies – British and Boers/Africaneers became allies in this regard. Coolies were working both in Boer’s farms as in the British mines, factories, also building public infrastructure (railways, bridges etc.) Both Africans and Indus living in the Union of South Africa had no political rights. Also most of economic freedoms were restricted – they could not bu land. But the most important were the restrictions in the freedom to move. Coolies were able to move to other regions than their work was just in the case of the formal consent of the employer s: segregational laws aggravated. Non-white population limited to live in certain areas („locations”) and could work only in certain low-skilled professions.

11. 1940s: Africaneers gain importance
Union of South Africa crucial for the UK during the 2nd World War
Important economic facility: iron mines, golds&diamonds, heavy industry
Very dinamic economic growth in this decade
Additionally Afrikaneer troops important for battles in North Africa against Germans

12. 1948: institutionalization of racial segregation
Afrikaneer National Party gains elections
PM Daniel Malan introduces the apartheid policy
Basic rule: people of different races should leave in separate, dedicated locations
Separate locations for non-white people (Black, Coloured and Indian)
Ban on communism parties and parties that support communism
Ban on marriages of mixed races and on sexual relations between peoples of different races
Separate educational, health and transport systems

13. The system of apartheid
Political doctrine of racial segregation in Union of South Africa and from 1960 in South Africa. Apartheid in afrikaans means separation.

14. Ryszard Kapuściński wrote that there were 2 versions of apartheid: popular and pseudo-scientific one. The popular version simply says that „each non-white is not a full human being”, while the pseudo-scientific claims that co-existence of white and non-white populations is problematic within one state. Thus, there is a need to create separate states for Black Africans (i.e. bantustans). In the Afrikaneers’ state (south Africa) non-whites should not have political and economic rights.

15. Apart from being a racist ideology, apartheid mostly secured the socio-economic and political dominance of minority (white population, including Afrikaneers) over majority (mostly Black Africans).

16. Source: wikipedia

17. Source: wikipedia

18. South Africa and cold war
1961 – Union of South Africa leaves Commonwealth, South Africa Republic is created;
South Africa isolated in the international community (for instance: first participation in Olympic Games in 1992 in Barcelona)
But the isolation pursued mostly within United Nations
Most of the countries of the Western block tolerate the Afrikaneer regime as the crucial ally in the rivalization with the comunist block

20. Most important assets of South Africa in cold war
Strategic location and geopolitical importance
Anticommunist engagement – wars in Namibia, Mozambique and Angola
Major economic power on African continent
Natural resources including gold, diamonds and uranium
Unofficially – access to nuclear weapon

21. Anti-apartheid opposition
Initially the largest opposition party – African National Congress – organized strikes and boycotts
1960 – Sharpeville massacre. Peaceful demonstration against pass books violently dispersed by police, 69 civilians dead.
Government delegalizes ANC. ANC creates military wing Umkhonto we Sizwe and starts sabotage actions
1963 – former ANC leader and leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe Nelson Mandela imprisoned (stays in jail till 1990). ANC adopt toughter measures to combat apartheid and is supported by communist block

22. Dismantlement of apartheid
Political reforms start in 1990: Nelson Mandela released from prison
1991: apartheid oficially cancelled
1993: Mandela and PM De Klerk awarded with Nobel Prize for Peace
1994: first democratic elections, won by ACN. Mandela becomes the first African president of the country. SA joins back the United Nations.

23. In spite of relative political stability, South Africa has to struggle with many problems. The gap between whites and non-white population lasted for over 100 years and constitutes a serious burden for socio-economic development.

24. ACN aims to reform the by:
Promoting the joint South African identity (ideology of Rainbow Nation);
Affirmative action in public administration and education (Black Empowerment).

25. Yet, after 1994 over a million of Afrikaneers, mostly highly-skilled workers, have left the country The most serious problems: extremely high criminality and AIDS pandemia