The Defiance Campaign against Unjust Laws was presented by the African National Congress (ANC) at a conference held in Bloemfontein, South Africa in December 1951. The Campaign had roots in events leading up the conference. The demonstrations, taking place in 1952 were the first "large-scale, multi-racial political mobilization against apartheid laws under a common leadership."
A strikebreaker is a person who works despite an ongoing strike. Strikebreakers are usually individuals who were not employed by the company before the trade union dispute, but rather hired after or during the strike to keep the organization running. "Strikebreakers" may also refer to workers who cross picket lines to work.
In South Africa, pass laws were a form of internal passport system designed to segregate the population, manage urbanization, and allocate migrant labor. Also known as the natives' law, pass laws severely limited the movements of not only black African citizens, but other people as well by requiring or designated areas. Before the 1950s, this legislation largely applied to African men, and attempts to apply it to women in the 1910s and 1950s were met with significant protests. Pass laws were one of the dominant features of the country's apartheid system until it was effectively ended in 1986.
Apartheid was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa from 1948 until the early 1990s. Apartheid was characterized by an authoritarian political culture based on baasskap, which ensured that South Africa was dominated politically, socially, and economically by the nation's minority white population. According to this system of social stratification, white citizens had the highest status, followed by Asians and Coloureds, then black Africans. The economic legacy and social effects of apartheid continue to the present day.
Trade unions in South Africa has a history dating back to the 1880s. From the beginning unions could be viewed as a reflection of the racial disunity of the country, with the earliest unions being predominantly for white workers. Through the turbulent years of 1948–1991 trade unions played an important part in developing political and economic resistance, and eventually were one of the driving forces in realising the transition to an inclusive democratic government.
The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 extended to the whole of India and regulated Indian labour law so far as that concerns trade unions as well as Individual workman employed in any Industry within the territory of Indian mainland. Enacted on 11 March 1947 and It came into force 1 April 1947. It was replaced by the Industrial Relations Code, 2020.
The Trade Disputes and Trade Unions Act 1927 was a British Act of Parliament passed in response to the General Strike of 1926, introduced by the Attorney General for England and Wales, Sir Douglas Hogg MP.
The Little Rivonia Trial was a South African apartheid-era court case in which several members of the armed resistance organization Umkhonto we Sizwe faced charges of sabotage. The accused were: Laloo Chiba, Dave Kitson, Mac Maharaj, John Matthews and Wilton Mkwayi. A confederate of theirs, Lionel Gay turned state witness, and in return, the prosecution dropped the charges against him.
Padraig O'Malley is an Irish peacemaker, author and professor at the University of Massachusetts Boston who specializes in the problems of divided societies, such as South Africa and Northern Ireland. He has written extensively on these subjects and has been actively involved in promoting dialogue among representatives of differing factions.
Internal resistance to apartheid in South Africa originated from several independent sectors of South African society and took forms ranging from social movements and passive resistance to guerrilla warfare. Mass action against the ruling National Party (NP) government, coupled with South Africa's growing international isolation and economic sanctions, were instrumental in leading to negotiations to end apartheid, which began formally in 1990 and ended with South Africa's first multiracial elections under a universal franchise in 1994.
The African Mine Workers' Strike was a labour dispute involving mine workers of Witwatersrand in South Africa. It started on 12 August, 1946 and lasted approximately a week. The strike was attacked by police and over the week, at least 1,248 workers were wounded and at least 9 killed.
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, political leader and philanthropist who served as the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the first elected in a fully representative democratic election. His government focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid by tackling institutionalised racism and fostering racial reconciliation. Ideologically an African nationalist and socialist, he served as the president of the African National Congress (ANC) party from 1991 to 1997.
The Extension of University Education Act, Act 45 of 1959, formed part of the apartheid system of racial segregation in South Africa. This act made it a criminal offense for a non-white student to register at a formerly open university without the written permission of the Minister of Internal Affairs. New universities were established for the various non-white groups. In the Western Cape, a school in Bellville was established for coloureds, while a school at Ngoye was created in Zululand for Zulus. For Indians, a school was established at Durban in Natal Province, at Turfloop in the Transvaal for the Sotho-Tswanans, while Fort Hare, the former Lovedale Mission College, became restricted to Xhosas.
The Urban Bantu Councils Act, Act No 79 of 1961, formed part of the apartheid system of racial segregation in South Africa. It replaced the Advisory Boards created earlier by the Natives Urban Areas Act of 1923, and permitted democratic election of new municipal councils with African chairmen which were assigned some administrative duties.
The Industrial Conciliation Act, 1956, formed part of the apartheid system of racial segregation in South Africa. It prohibited the registration of any new 'mixed' unions and imposed racially separate branches and all-white executive committees on existing 'mixed' unions. It prohibited strikes in 'essential industries' for both black and white workers and banned political affiliations for unions. Clause 77 legalized the reservation of skilled jobs to white workers, as the Bantu Building Workers Act of 1951 had done in the construction trade, 'to ensure that they will not be exploited by the lower standard of living of any other race'.
The Abolition of Racially Based Land Measures Act, 1991 is an act of the Parliament of South Africa which repealed many of the apartheid laws that imposed race-based restrictions on land ownership and land use. Among the laws repealed were the Black Land Act, 1913, the Development Trust and Land Act, 1936 and the Group Areas Act, 1966.
The South African Congress of Trade Unions (SACTU) was a national trade union federation in South Africa.
The Transitional Executive Council (TEC) was a multiparty body in South Africa that was established by law to facilitate the transition to democracy, in the lead-up to the country's first non-racial election in April 1994.
The 1973 Durban strikes, also commonly referred to as the Durban Moment were a series of labour disputes and worker-led demonstrations held in Durban in 1973. Underpaid, black African workers across various sectors deliberately withheld their labour in an attempt to demand higher wages and better working conditions. Beginning on 9 January 1973, mass strikes broke out in Durban and continued for three months until the end of March. The strikes involved roughly 60 000 black African workers and impacted more than 100 firms. The highest number of strikes occurred on the outskirts of Durban in textile, metal and chemical plants. Although the number of strikes declined after March, 100 000 black African and Indian workers were reported to have taken some form of industrial action by the end of 1973.
As a response to South Africa's apartheid policies, the international community started adopted economic sanctions as condemnation and pressure.
