What is "Apartheid" and how did it impact south Africa?
Another thing is that there was a lot of 'brain-washing' happening at that time. The white policemen burned documentation in the mornings that reported their previous night's crimes. As we were under a lot of pressure from the outside world, the government had to hide it from them, and they also hid the truth from the average white guy sitting at home and watching tv. There were some conflict photographers who took pictures of the wars in the townships and the mutilations of which Sagitarius naturally knows nothing (as many other white people). These guys worked for international publications and were often forced to flee from the country when police discovered them. Sagitarius can read up on the confessions made by both white and black at the Truth & Reconciliation committee or she can look up on those photographers here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bang-Bang_C...
Was South Africa's economy better in apartheid?
Economic sanctions against apartheid South Africa stunted economic growth.Who knows what could have been if there was no apartheid?Only white South Africans benefitted during apartheid.Black people lived in abject poverty.Black workers rights were non-existent and exploitation was rife.If there was a strong economy during apartheid, it was dependent on the sweat, blood, tears and in some cases, death, of Black workers. This is the “Black Gold” that you may have heard of - cheap labor from the pool of desperate, starving Black people.Such a valuable resource since they got the job done for a pittance. Which resulted in massive profits for the companies.A prime example are the mine workers. Extracting gold and diamonds at high risk to their lives and health. Workers regularly died on the job with zero workmen’s compensation. Workers lived in terrible conditions in the barracks near their work places. That together with the long-term impact on their health, living & working in sub-standard conditions was an effective life sentence.An industry that chewed them up & disrespected them in life and in death.I say: “If there was a strong economy during apartheid” because I and those around me certainly did not feel a strong economy. We couldn’t afford most things. We never set foot in a nice store because we could not afford anything in there. We starved, literally starved.Of what use is a strong economy if the people are starving?
Apartheid in south africa?
White South Africans were regarded as the better race (superior) race, and that lead to withes having privileges we as black South Africans can dream of. A clear example, the standard of education for blacks was poor while whites had access to better education in most cases some profession like Economist, Accountant etc were only reserved for white people. Even if you can afford better education but blacks weren't allowed to study at elite institutions like, University of Pretoria, Free State and Stellenbosch etc, black universities were Fort Hare and University of Transkie. In sport, blacks and white were not allowed to be on a same team or even play against each other and blacks couldn't represent the country in any sporting code. Blacks we not allowed to buy houses in cities i.e. Joburg, Pretoria, Cape Town etc, even if you as a black person were employed in a city, it was against the law to even rent a room in city, you had to find a place to stay in townships and in-formal settlement that is designated for blacks to live in. At all times if you are a black you were required to carry a document like passport and if police catches you without it you'd go to jail. There are a lot of things I could say about South Africa and apartheid which are terribly. Anyway South Africa is a better country now except the politics. Everyone is friendly and have beautiful places to visit.
Did the Cold War affect South Africa? If so, how?
In short South African Apartheid regime survived because it was a key ally of USA in cold war. South Africa used their military to fight communists in Africa. USA used their veto power to shield apartheid regime from any international pressure in UN. USA vetoed following motions for the apartheid regime in SA -1979 Calls for an end to all military and nuclear collaboration with the apartheid South Africa.1979 Strengthens the arms embargo against South Africa.1979 Offers assistance to all the oppressed people of South Africa and their liberation movement.1980 Offers assistance to the oppressed people of South Africa and their national liberation movement.1981 Condemns South Africa for attacks on neighbouring states, condemns apartheid and attempts to strengthen sanctions. 7 resolutions.1981 Condemns an attempted coup by South Africa on the Seychelles.1983 Resolutions about apartheid, nuclear arms, economics, and international law. 15 resolutions.1984 Condemns support of South Africa in its Namibian and other policies.1984 International action to eliminate apartheid.1986 Imposes economic and military sanctions against South Africa. USA supplied the intelligence that led to capture of Mandela. In fact Mandela's name was in CIA terrorist list till 2008. South Africa in return supported anti- communist groups in various civil wars in Africa. This included helping anti communist group UNITA and .fighting Angolan government, SWAPO and their allies Cuba and Soviet union, in Angola and Namibia. Similarly they fought against communist black rebels in now Zimbabwe, thus supporting white minority Rhodesian govt. In 1986 as cold war came to a close, US congress imposed sanctions against South Africa and stated five preconditions for lifting the sanctions, including establishing a timetable for the elimination of apartheid laws and the release of political prisoner Nelson Mandela. The legislation, which banned all new US trade and investment in South Africa, also refused South African Airways flights from landing at US airports. This legislation was seen as a catalyst for similar sanctions in Europe and Japan. Disinvestment that followed the resolution resulted in economic depression in SA. Soon the apartheid SA regime started negotiations with ANC and other African parties. The apartheid, minority white-rule came to an end few years later and majority rule arrived in SA.
Why were sanctions imposed on south africa?
In a nutshell, many countries in the international community, with a few exceptions, identified with the liberation movement, most notably the ANC, which wanted all discriminatory and segregate laws to be abolished by the then Nationalist governemnt, as well as equal rights afforde to all South Africans. The International Community imposed economic and other sanctions as a strategy for the then Apartheid governemnt to be coerced into affording equal rights to all and abolish apartheid legislation. This intervention most certainly contributed to ending apartheid.
An aspect of Apartheid in South Africa broad enough to write an essay on?
Great idea! Everybody is giving you all the political rhetoric that went with it but none address the the real reason or the philosophy that went with it. The phrase APARTHEID was coined as the slogan for SEPARATE DEVELOPMENT where each ethnicity could develop their own culture, retain their own customs and function as a sub nation within a whole country. The same principle was being developed in Germany but went overboard when the persecution of the Jews started. In fact the Jews were quite apart from the rest of Germany too but Hitler thought they were overdoing it by hoarding money and not releasing it to create industry. If you develop your essay around this aspect you may have the most interesting production, since everybody else will be out there slinging mud and riding a dead horse. We all know what happened to the utopian dream and the declining South Africa as an aftermath. The country was well into 1st world as an equal in various scientific fields and earned its place as the most prosperous and advanced on the African continent.
To what degree did violence help end South African apartheid?
The sustained high levels of violence all around the country forced the state to spend huge sums of money trying to suppress it. Also, part of the violence was to enforce ‘mass-action’ industrial strikes. Anyone who tried to get to work on strike days was liable to be killed by organised mobs. This had a major impact on businesses and the economy in general. Combined with the intrnational economic sanctions against South Africa, the apartheid government could see that bankruptcy was looming. They had a choice: go down in the flames and chaos of all out civil war (which they knew they would ultimately lose), or start negotiating a peaceful transition to full democracy. The apartheid governments decision to go with negotiations was made easier by the collapse of the Soviet Union. The various ‘liberation movements’ no longer had the financial and military support of the Communist Bloc, so they too realised that a negotiated transition was preferable to a violent overthrow of the apartheid government.
Did South Africa enjoy tourism as part of it's economy during apartheid?
The South African Tourism Industry, certainly existed during the Apartheid era. Arguably South African Tourism in the 1970s was set to grow faster than it is now. South Africa was the number one tourist destination in the Southern Hemisphere[1] Economic sanctions and negative, often exaggerated, reporting on the security situation during riots dented the international component, during the 1980s, but destinations like Cape Town and the Kruger Park definitely still attracted foreign visitors.Since the end of Apartheid international tourism, has grown Possible because of South Africa's improved image, but also because flights from developed countries are now much cheaper, and the Rand/Dollar exchange rate is favorable to tourists. In 1978 1 US Dollar was worth R 0.78, today it is worth R 15.International Tourism to South Africa, could still be a whole lot bigger considering the many attractions. Crime still deters many.Footnotes[1] The growth of tourism » 18 Jul 1970 » The Spectator Archive