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Statement by Oliver Tambo on the murder of Griffiths Mxenge, 01 November 1981
On the night of the 19th of November in the South African city of Durban, agents of the Pretoria regime brutally assassinated Griffiths Mxenge. Using knives,…
PlaceKuboes, Northern Cape
Regarded by the local people as the heartland of the Nama Culture, the little Town of Kuboes lies nestled between the Mountains of Ku Boesberg to the North,…
PlaceElgin
Originally called Koffee Kraal, the village of Elgin is a lush land circled with mountains, in the Overberg region. This broad upland valley, lies about 70km…
Launch of The Eye of the Needle by Richard Turner
Described by Nelson Mandela as a source of inspiration, Richard Turner was a central figure in the white South African student movement and key in its…
PlaceMauritania
Mauritania, Country on the Atlantic coast of Africa. Culturally it forms a transitional zone between the Arab-Amazigh (Berber) populations of North Africa and…
EventRudolph Lewis, South African road racing cyclist is born
Rudolph Ludewyk “Okey” Lewis was born on 12 July 1887 in Pretoria.[i] Rudolph was South Africa’s second world class athlete after Laurens S Meintjes.[ii] He…
ArchiveBlack Sash / Sash
Sash, originally published as Black Sash, is a detailed record of the activities of the Black Sash organisation: the petitions, protests, marches, vigils,…
EventNatal is formally separated from the Cape Colony
On 15 July 1856, Natal Colony (now known as Kwazulu Natal) was formally separated from the Cape Colony by means of the Charter of Natal. The Cape Governor…
EventErfdeel farm in Orange Free State becomes SA’s richest gold deposit
On 3 June 1954, a mining engineer at the Erfdeel farm in the Orange Free State pulled up a drill-core laden with ore from nearly 6,000-feet. The Essayists…
PlaceSeal Point Lighthouse, Cape St. Francis
Commissioned on 11 May 1950 The Cape Seal lighthouse lies within the Robberg Nature and Marine Reserve on the seaward tip of what is known as Cape Seal in…
EventScores of people are killed in Boipatong, Vaal
One of the most gruesome attacks on township residents was carried out by armed men from Kwa Madala Hostel in Sebokeng, south of Johannesburg. In what has…
EventInaugural Women’s Legacy Dialogue
The Inaugural Women’s Legacy Dialogue took place on 13 August 2010 in the Sandton Sun Hotel, Johannesburg. The event was in context with Women’s month. The…
EventUN Security Council urges SA government to end Rivonia Trial
On June 9, 1964, just two days before the final verdict was reached, the UN Security Council passed a resolution urging the South African government to end the…
EventViolence erupts in Paarl
Violence erupted when Poqo members from Mbekweni, Paarl, met and resolved to attack the White town of Paarl. Over 200 men armed with axes, pangas, sticks,…
EventThe Liquor Laws Amendment Bill comes into effect
Location: back to this day in history search archive The Liquor Act, which was passed on 23 June 1927, prohibited Africans and Indians from serving liquor,…
EventFollowing the infamous Treason Trial, ANC leader Chief Albert Luthuli is banished by the Apartheid Government for five years
Chief Albert John Luthuli, President of the African National Congress (ANC) from 1952 to 1967 and Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1961, was one of South Africa's…
EventANC adopts the Programme of Action
The adoption of a Programme of Action by the African National Congress (ANC) at the December conference marked one of the most important turning points in the…
EventSA Corps of Military Police is reorganised
On 10 November 1939, shortly after the outbreak of the Second World War (WW2), Proclamation 276 of Government Gazette 2699 was published. This proclamation…
EventArchbishop Desmond Tutu is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
Archbishop Mpilo Desmond Tutu, world renowned preacher and strident voice against apartheid, first Black Secretary General of the South African Council of…
EventThe apartheid government agrees to eliminate racial segregation in theatres but not in cinemas
In 1950, the two major pieces of legislation designed to create the new 'apartheid (apart) city' were enacted, namely the Population Registration Act and the…
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…
EventRebels overrun the Somalian capital of Mogadishu
In 1969 Somalian president Abd-i-rashid Ali Shermarke was assassinated in a military Coup. Major General Mohammad Siyad Barre took control of the country's…
EventA car bomb explodes at Ellis Park Rugby Stadium
On 2 July 1988, Lester Dumakude, commander of an Umkhonto we Sizwe special operations unit, detonated a car bomb by remote control outside Ellis Park Stadium…
EventSA President P.W Botha meets with leaders of independent homelands
The leaders of the four 'independent' homelands, namely; Bophuthatswana, Ciskei, Transkei, and Venda, attended a five-nation summit in Pretoria, chaired by the…
EventJan van Riebeeck visits Robben Island for the first time
Robben Island is the largest of the nearby coastal islands around the Cape. In the nearly four centuries of European settlement it has been used for numerous…
EventThe first missionary in Southern Africa, Gonçalo da Silveira, is murdered
Gonçalo da Silveira was a Jesuit Priest born and educated in Portugal. He was a missionary in India, acting as provincial superior for the Jesuits, before he…
EventThe Azanian People’s Liberation Army (APLA) disbands
The Azanian People's Liberation Army (APLA) was the underground military wing of the Pan African Congress (PAC). APLA was formed in the 1960s, after the…
EventApartheid policemen apply for amnesty at TRC
Eight former apartheid policemen, including former police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Johan Coetzee, former hit-squad commander Eugene de Kock and former…
EventAn application to the Pretoria Supreme Court, to declare the Freedom of Choice to Terminate Pregnancy Law unconstitutional, fails.
An application to the Pretoria Supreme Court, to declare the Freedom of Choice to Terminate Pregnancy Law unconstitutional, fails. In 1998 South Africa's…
Event15 000 applications for gold mining permits received per week in Johannesburg
The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) transformed South African from an agrarian society at the edge of world trade into a globally integrated…