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EventVorster appoints a Commission of Inquiry
Prime Minister John Vorster appoints a Commission of Inquiry under chairmanship of Justice H. J. Potgieter of The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court to…
EventCol. Muammar Gaddafi seizes power in Libya
On 1 September 1969, Muammar Gaddafi seized power in Libya after a coup d'etat. Gaddafi, the leader of the Free Unionist Officers movement, overthrew the…
EventThe father of Rosalind Ballingall joins the search for his missing daughter
Rosalind Ballingall was a student at the University of Cape Town (UCT) who reportedly disappeared in the Knysna Forest. The daughter of a Rand Mine's executive…
EventDr Phillip Blaiberg dies in Cape Town
The dentist Dr Phillip Blaiberg died in Cape Town after living 19 months and 15 days following a successful heart transplant operation by Dr. Chris Barnard in…
EventKaunda announces nationalisation of Copper mines
Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda announces nationalisation of copper mining companies, key to Zambia's economy contributing over 50 percent of government…
EventSouth African invention lands on the moon
Krugersdorp was the hometown of engineer George Pratley who founded the Pratley research group (PTY) and went on to invent Pratley Putty in the early 1960's…
EventThe lengthy trial of Gandar and Pogrund ends
The lengthy and expensive trial of Laurence Gandar and Benjamin Pogrund, of the Rand Daily Mail, on charges under the Prisons Act, ends with both being found…
EventTwelve Africans are acquitted at the Supreme Court
Twelve Africans on trial at the Supreme Court in Grahamstown, accused of having conspired to take over a town and kill Whites, were acquitted on the charge,…
EventGeneral Laws Amendment Bill is passed
A Bill affecting state security, called the General Laws Amendment Bill, was passed in parliament despite rejection from the opposition parties and severe…
EventEx Defence Minister P.W. Botha denies arms purchase
The denial of South Africa's involvement in arms dealing with the former Rwandan Army came seven years into sanctions placed on South Africa by the United…
EventThe South African Bureau of State Security (BOSS) is established
After becoming Prime Minister of South Africa in 1966, John Vorster met with Hendrik van den Bergh, the head of the South African Police Security Branch. At…
EventPAC leader Robert Sobukwe is released
Pan-Africanist Congress leader, Robert Sobukwe, was arrested after the Sharpeville anti-pass campaign of 1960 and harshly sentenced to three years in prison…
EventDorothy Fischer becomes the first South African woman to undergo a heart transplant
40 year-old Dorothy Fisher was given a new heart in 1969 and became the longest surviving patient. She lived for 12 years afterwards. She was South Africa's…
EventF.W. de Klerk marries Marike Willemse
Former South African State President F.W. de Klerk married Marike Willemse on this date. The couple met at the University of Potchefstroom where they were both…
EventThe fifteenth annual conference of Trade Union Council of South Africa (TUCSA) alters its constitution
The fifteenth Annual Conference of the Trade Union Council of South Africa (TUCSA) altered its constitution in such a way that effectively debarred Africans…
EventWhite entrepreneurs to be given contracts in the ‘homelands’
Prime Minister B J Vorster announces that White entrepreneurs will be given long-standing contracts in the 'homelands' to speed up economic development. This…
EventRetief Goosen is born.
On 3 February 1969 Retief Goosen, a prominent South African golf player was born in Pietersburg, Limpopo province. Goosen, famously known by his nickname "The…
Over 400 Kikuyu suspected to be part of the Mau Mau movement are arrested in Kenya
EventThe Ciskei homeland is established
The Ciskei was established under the Bantu Authorities Act of 1951 as an 'independent republic'. The creation of Ciskei was in line with apartheid policies of…
EventArchibald Campbell Mzoliza Jordan, Xhosa writer and linguist, dies
Archibald Campbell Mzoliza Jordan Xhosa writer and linguist died in the United State of America in Madison Wisconsin. Jordan was born on 30 October 1906 at the…
EventEquatorial Guinea gains Independence from Spain
The colonial history of Equatorial Guinea dates back to 1471 when Portuguese explorers descended on the country. On their way to India, Portuguese explorers…
EventJohn Vorster says SA will welcome Maoris
Prime Minister John Vorster said that South Africa would welcome Maoris in New Zealand rugby teams. The presence of Maoris, a non-White indigenous New Zealand…
EventStudents support the appointment of Archie Mafeje
More than 200 students at the University of Cape Town (UCT) embarked on a "sit in" to protest against government intervention that forced the university to…
EventSA signs Nuclear Non
South Africa was one of the countries that signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to curb the spread of nuclear weapons. Other countries that signed the…
The Separate Representation of Voters Amendment Act is passed
EventAcademic and ANC politician Z.K. Matthews dies
On 12 May 1968, South African academic, African National Congress (ANC) politician, and Botswana's first ambassador to the USA and envoy to the UN, Zachariah…
EventThe Ben Schoeman freeway is opened
The Ben Schoeman N1 freeway between Johannesburg and Pretoria, named after the then minister of transport, was opened on this date. In the forty years of its…
EventSA Boeing 707 crashes in Namibia
Pretoria, a Boeing 707 of South African Airways (SAA), en route to London and only in use for seventeen days, crashed and exploded shortly after take-off from…
EventBiafra, a Nigerian Province is recognised by Tanzania
On 30 May 1967, Biafra declared itself independent from Nigeria. This region comprised roughly the south-eastern provinces of Nigeria. This declaration came…
EventSeparate Representation of Voters Amendment Act No 50 of 1968 is enacted
The Coloured Persons Representative Council was formed with forty elected members and twenty nominated members. It had legislative powers to make laws…