Number of banned persons in South Africa totals 936

When the system of apartheid was implemented in South Africa in 1948, certain laws had to be put in place to maintain white domination in all aspects of South African society. Apart from the legislation implemented to ensure the separation of different racial groups, such as the Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act (1949) and the Group Areas Act (1950),  laws such as the Suppression of Communism Act (1950), and the Riotous Assembly Act (1927) were enforced to deal with resistance against the apartheid government through a system of banning. A banned person was restricted to his/her home and could not be seen with more than one person at a time. Living under banning orders also meant that one could not be quoted, and therefore could neither speak publicly nor write for an audience. By 1966, 936 people in South Africa had been banned, with 467 listed as communists under the Suppression of Communism Act, 515 banned under the Suppression of Communism and Riotous Assembly Acts and 3 banned under the Riotous Assemblies Act. An additional 49 names are listed as both communists and banned persons. Between 1950 and 1990, more than 2000 people were banned in South Africa and labelled as terrorists, communists or perceived by the apartheid government as a threat to public security. The ban on anti-apartheid activists was finally lifted in 1990. Further Reading: Royle, D. "South Africa's banned persons live a life where home is a jail". The Blade, 12 June 1966. p.2. [online] Available at: news.google.com [Accessed 7 July 2009] SAHO Lives of Courage Feature: information on banned persons and anti-apartheid activism References: Apartheid Legislation in South Africa [online]. Available at: africanhistory.about.com [Accessed 8 July 2009] "Beacon for Freedom of Expression - South Africa: Background Information" [online] Available at: beaconforfreedom.org [Accessed 7 July 2009] Kalley, J.A.; Schoeman, E. & Andor, L.E. (eds) (1999) Southern African Political History: a chronology of key political events from independence to mid-1997, Westport: Greenwood.