Moments in South African History

Former South African president FW de Klerk who died at the age of 85 in Cape Town, was one of only four South Africans to receive the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize.  De Klerk shared the award with his presidential successor, Nelson Mandela, in 1993 for ending apartheid and helping to create a new South Africa.  Following the historic 1994 election, De Klerk became Mandela's deputy.  But their rocky relationship saw him quit their Government of National Unity.  During the Truth and Reconciliation Commission period, De Klerk apologised for the pain and suffering that apartheid had caused, but didn't go far enough for everyone.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, John Perlman, Danny Booysen and the SABC Media Libraries.

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South Africa's last white president, FW de Klerk, who has died at the age of 85 in Cape Town, will be remembered for effectively ending apartheid and paving the way for constitutional negotiations.  On the second of February 1990, De Klerk shocked everyone by unbanning anti-apartheid organisations, such as the ANC, and by announcing the release of the world's then-most famous prisoner, Nelson Mandela.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, John Perlman, Danny Booysen and the SABC Media Libraries.

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After a long process to choose a design and construct a building, the new South African Constitutional Court building, the flagship structure of Constitution Hill, was officially opened on 21 March 2004. Judge Albie Sachs gives us a tour of the historic site.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis

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Most people would frown at a casino consortium agreeing to build a museum for its licence. But that’s exactly what Gold Reef City has done with the help of a team of experts. It got its licence and it’s quietly built an impressive apartheid museum on its doorstep in Johannesburg. The museum opened in 2001.

Credits:  Angie Kapelianis

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PW Botha personified apartheid and the old National Party for most South Africans. For eleven years between 1978 and 1989, he ruled the country as prime minister and then president with a wagging index-finger, two States of Emergency and his repressive security forces. Although Botha introduced limited reforms, he failed to cross his own Rubicon by not abolishing apartheid.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Anita Visser and the SABC Media Libraries.

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Veteran activist and sociologist, Professor Fatima Meer championed equality and social justice. Under apartheid, she was banned, detained and held in solitary confinement. She also survived an attempted assassination and arson attack on her Durban house.

Credits: Thrishni Subramoney, Dumisani Shange, Angie Kapelianis and the SABC Media Libraries.

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Seamus Heaney called her "one of the great guerrillas of the imagination"; the Nobel Committee called her "a magnificent epic writer" and the Independent newspaper says she's "one of the world's greatest writers".

Credits: Angie Kapelianis

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They were warriors, not soldiers. Black South Africans recruited as labourers to serve in World War One under the British flag. But, they weren't allowed to carry arms. Not even their assegais, shields or sticks. And instead of dying in battle, they drowned aboard the SS Mendi at sea. Unknown and forgotten. But, these men was remembered in their own country in 1995 when Queen Elizabeth the Second unveiled a plaque in their honour at Soweto's Avalon Cemetry. This is their story and the story of their children.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis

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Respected political analyst and former official opposition leader, Dr Frederik Van Zyl Slabbert played a key role in South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy. He led the former Progressive Federal Party; the official opposition in Parliament; and several meetings with the then-exiled ANC, most notably the 1987 Dakar conference. He viewed himself as a "philosophical anarchist".

Credits: Angie Kapelians, the SABC Media Library and Radio Diaries (USA). 

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Renowned anti-apartheid cleric, Dr Beyers Naudé, better known as Oom Bey, was called many things during his lifetime. From staunch Afrikaner and respected Dominee to traitor of the Volk and prophet of the nation. But how did he come to earn these labels and his place in the history of South Africa?

Credits: Angie Kapelianis and the SABC Media library.

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Epainette Mbeki was the second black woman to join the South African Communist Party in the late 1930s. Although she was inextricably linked to the ANC, she officially only joined the former liberation movement in 1990 after it had been unbanned. She was also one of the country's oldest and most politically outspoken citizens, who supported the breakaway of the Congress of the People from the ANC in late 2008.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Lulama Matya, Mandla Gceya, Zanele Jambane and the SABC Media Library.

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Helen Suzman was the only parliamentary representative of the old South African Progressive Party for 13 years. She was also the only woman in the 165-seat Parliament for six years. These numbers show the odds and courage that she faced in her life-long battle against the all-powerful apartheid machine.

Credits: Steven Lang, Angie Kapelianis and the SABC Media Library.

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George Bizos, Anti-Apartheid Activist and Human Rights Lawyer. Angie Kapelianis, interviewed Advocate Bizos at the Legal Resources Centre in Johannesburg on the 28th of May 2007, when his memoir, Odyssey to Freedom, was published.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis and Danny Booysen.

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Andrew Mlangeni was one of the ANC’s first MK members to be trained in communist China and to meet “Chairman Mao” in 1962.  Back home, Mlangeni disguised himself as a priest to recruit others into the armed struggle and became known as “Robot”.  In mid-1964, Mlangeni and seven other Rivonia trialists – including Denis Goldberg, “Kathy” Kathrada, Raymond Mhlaba and Elias Motsoaledi – were convicted of conspiring to overthrow the apartheid government by violent revolution.  For that, Mlangeni was jailed for over 26 years.  He only tasted freedom again at the age of 64 in late 1989.  Here’s a snapshot of Andrew Mlangeni’s life … in his own voice.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Danny Booysen and Radio Diaries (USA).

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The music that you heard was from the late Art Pepper’s albums, “Living Legend” and “The Way It Was”…

Miriam Makeba was South Africa's biggest international artist and the continent's first super-star.  Makeba used her captivating voice as a liberation weapon against apartheid on the world stage. She was known as "The Girl with the Smile in her Voice"; "The Empress of African Song"; "The People's Artist" and "Mama Africa". 

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Lebo Monnamogolo and the SABC media libraries.

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Dolly Rathebe rose to prominence in 1949 when she became South Africa's first black movie star in 'Jim Comes to Jo'burg'. Rathebe was soon splashed on the cover of Drum magazine and singing with several top bands such as the Elite Swingsters. She bowed out of the spotlight to run a shebeen in Cape Town when Afro-jazz went out of fashion. In 1989 Dolly Rathebe and the Elite Swingsters got back together.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis and the SABC media libraries.

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Adelaide Tambo, the "grand dame" of the ANC liberation movement, devoted her entire life to the struggle against apartheid. The ANC said her strength, compassion and determination had been a source of inspiration.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Chevon Erasmus, Izak Minnaar and the SABC media libraries.

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Oliver Reginald Tambo was the ANC liberation movements’ longest-serving president. Tambo led the ruling party in exile for almost a quarter of a century from 1967 to 1991.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis and the SABC media libraries.

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Angie Kapelianis reflects on the life of Albertina Sisulu, who was described as a big tree in whose shelter and shade people sought comfort and solace.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Zanele Jambane,the SABC media libraries and - news research.

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Walter Sisulu dedicated more than half of his life to equal rights and opportunities for all South Africans. But he never sought any credit for his involvement or achievements. Instead, he paid a high price for his beliefs and vision. The apartheid authorities jailed him for more than 25 years in a bid to break his spirit and his grip on ordinary South Africans. Angie Kapelianis has been digging in the archives to trace Walter Sisulu's difficult, but rewarding journey.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis and the SABC Media Libraries.

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Former president Nelson Mandela wasn't a brilliant orator like Winston Churchill, John F Kennedy, Martin Luther King or Barack Obama. But Mandela was one of the most quoted and influential people in the world. And he often got standing ovations without even saying a word. Such was the appreciation of his sacrifices, lack of retribution and commitment to democracy. When Mandela did speak, though, he measured his words, spoke confidently, and often disarmed everyone with his unique brand of humour. Angie Kapelianis highlights some of Nelson Mandela's classic sound bites in almost half a century from 1961 to 2009.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Danny Booysen, the SABC Media Library and ITN.

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Nelson Mandela was an iconic brand and registered trademark. Mandela’s distinctive identity and values were regarded as a priceless, protected asset. At one stage, he was the second most widely recognised brand after Coca Cola.  For the first time in 2009, business and consumers overwhelmingly named Mandela as their “favourite personality” in the Sunday Times Top Brands Survey. Psychologist Megan de Beyer said Mandela was the “selfless...super-hero”. He was inspirational in showing love and mercy instead of hatred and cynicism for his suffering. Michelle Constant and Monique Stander compiled this feature on “Brand Mandela”.

Credits: Michelle Constant, Monique Stander, Angie Kapelianis, Danny Booysen and the SABC Media Library

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American philosopher and academic, Professor Cornel West, says former president Nelson Mandela was a “jazz and blues” man in South Africa's liberation struggle. West defines Mandela in terms of "the blue note". He says Mandela agonized and questioned in the struggle tradition.  But just like jazz musicians, Mandela also provided a glimmer of hope for a whole generation.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Chevon Erasmus, Danny Booysen and the SABC Media Library

This reflection includes the music of Charles Mingus, Billie Holiday, the late Miriam Makeba, Mahalia Jackson, as well as Earth, Wind and Fire.

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Former president Nelson Mandela believed that sport had the power to change and unite the world like little else. Mandela once said: Sport “is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers.” Although renowned as an amateur boxer, Mandela didn’t believe he was particularly talented. But his diligence and perseverance saw him succeed where many others would have given up. That and a touch of “Madiba Magic” are the legacies he's left for generations of athletes and sports fans. Janet Whitton looks at the power and value of sport in Nelson Mandela's life.

Credits: Janet Whitton, Angie Kapelianis and Danny Booysen

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Former president Nelson Mandela has left an indelible mark all over the world and in most people's hearts. Ordinary people single out his fight for freedom, lengthy imprisonment, lack of bitterness, political reforms and social advocacy as their main reasons for admiring him. Keith Sayster, Angie Kapelianis and Danny Booysen compiled this report, with contributions from some of the SABC's former foreign correspondents.

Credits: Keith Sayster, Angie Kapelianis, Danny Booysen, Thami Dickson, Page Kollock, Frank Ferro, Amina Accram and John Bailey.

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Nelson Mandela was already 75 years old when he voted for the first time in his life on the 27th of April 1994. On that day, black and white South Africans were finally allowed to stand in the same queue to elect a government of their choice. Mandela's decision to vote at the Ohlange High School at Inanda, north of Durban, was historically and politically strategic.  The school was founded by the ANC's first president and located in a province that had been torn apart by political violence between the ANC and the IFP. Mandla Zembe retraces some of Nelson Mandela's footsteps to and from Ohlange High.

Credits: Ismail Jinnah, Elize van  der Walt, Sikhumbuzo Mabizela, Sandile Ngidi, Angie Kapelianis and Danny Booysen.

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Nelson Mandela became South Africa's first democratically-elected president at the ripe age of 75 in May 1994. Mandela led South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy in an unprecedented one-term in office until early 1999. He won international respect for advocating and practicing reconciliation. But he was criticized for not doing enough about empowerment, redress and HIV/Aids. Sya van der Walt highlights some of the hallmarks of Mandela's presidency.

Credits: Sya van der Walt, Angie Kapelianis, Danny Booysen and the SABC Media Libraries.

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Former president Nelson Mandela briefly served as a Member of Parliament in 1994, following South Africa’s historic multi-racial elections. In fact, Mandela’s membership of the national legislature lasted only a few minutes because he was unanimously elected as South Africa’s new President. Nevertheless, he interacted regularly with the legislature, including the smaller opposition parties. Mercedes Besent reports.

Credits: Mercedes Besent , Angie Kapelianis and Danny Booysen.

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Former president Nelson Mandela’s tireless efforts from 1994 boosted South Africa’s economy. Mandela and his ANC-led Government of National Unity inherited a bankrupt country following years of international sanctions against the previous apartheid government. During Mandela’s five-year term, the country’s Gross Domestic Product, measuring annual production, increased, on average, by almost three per cent. Moses Mlangeni and Angie Kapelianis compiled this special report on Mandela's contribution to Africa's largest economy.

Credits: Moses Mlangeni, Angie Kapelianis and Danny Booysen.

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Ché Guevara, Amilcar Cabral, Agostinho Neto and Samora Machel. These are just some of the well-known freedom fighters with whom Nelson Mandela secretly trained in 1962 in northern Africa. There, they learnt the art of guerrilla warfare to liberate their countries. When Mandela was released from jail about 30 years later, he first revisited the continent to thank his African allies for their support and solidarity. Miranda Strydom and Angie Kapelianis compiled this feature on Mandela and Africa.

Credits: Miranda Strydom, Angie Kapelianis, Habs Habedi, Danny Booysen and the SABC Media Library

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Nelson Mandela was Accused Number One in the Rivonia Sabotage Trial at the Palace of Justice in Pretoria between October 1963 and June 1964. The Rivonia Trial is regarded as one of the most politically significant court cases in South Africa's history. During that eight-month trial, 45-year-old Mandela established himself as one of the country's foremost political figures. From the dock, he declared that he was prepared to die for a democratic and free South Africa. Sandra de Lange and Angie Kapelianis reflect on the Rivonia trial, its impact and significance.

Credits: Sandra de Lange, Angie Kapelianis, Elsabe Smit, Danny Booysen and the SABC Media Libraries.

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Former president Nelson Mandela had more in common with the old Broederbond, K.V.W, Sanlam and Stellenbosch University than met the eye. They were all born in South Africa in 1918. Mandela took his first breath at the rural village of Mvezo in the Eastern Cape on the 18th of July 1918. Angie Kapelianis looks at the village and year of Mandela's birth.

Credits: Angie Kapelianis and Danny Booysen 

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