Making Sense of South Africa’s Rich History

In this episode of FO° Podcasts, Atul Singh interviews Martin Plaut about South Africa’s complex past. They discuss the country’s early formation, starting with the arrival of the Dutch in 1652 and the subsequent British takeover that sent the Boers, as Dutch settlers came to be known as, packing inland. In due course, the discovery of gold and diamonds in their territory led to the Boer War. The British ultimately triumphed at a great cost but allowed the Boers to impose racial discrimination that eventually led to the apartheid regime.
Plaut then goes on to explain the rise of the African National Congress (ANC) in 1912 as a unifying force for black South Africans against the increasingly oppressive white regime. Key figures like Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo emerged, advocating for more radical tactics and forming alliances with the South African Communist Party (SACP). 
The 1960 Sharpeville massacre in which police fired at unarmed protestors after a stray shot from the crowd fired up resistance to the apartheid regime. Many ANC leaders opted for armed resistance, which was utterly ineffectual but led to a crackdown by the apartheid regime. It banned the ANC and jailed its leaders.
After a few quiet years, the 1970s saw a resurgence of resistance, with white students, including Plaut, supporting the formation of labor unions and the United Democratic Front. These organizations, along with international pressure and the ANC’s armed struggle, contributed to the eventual downfall of apartheid. However, the ANC’s tendency to consolidate power and control other organizations came to the fore, raising concerns about its commitment to truly democratic principles.
To its credit, the ANC represented all ethnicities and stood for equality for all. It opposed discrimination and championed democracy. The post-apartheid South Africa has had many challenges, but the values of democracy, rule of law and freedom of expression run strong. The history of a prolonged independence struggle against colonialism makes South Africa resilient and gives us reason for optimism regarding the future.
[Peter Choi edited this podcast and wrote the first draft of this piece.]
The views expressed in this article/podcast are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.