what caused the sharpeville massacre

ISCOR and SASOL, the state's metal and fuel companies, were and continue to be the two key role players in the provision of employment in the Sharpeville region. But in the aftermath of the Sharpeville massacre, the UN adopted a more interventionist stance towards the apartheid state. The 1960 Sharpeville Massacre was the result of a peaceful protest regarding racist South African policies of apartheid. This movement sought to overcome the subjugation the racist South African government and apartheid laws imposed on Blacks. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Eyewitness accounts of the Sharpeville massacre 1960 The day of the Massacre, mourning the dead and getting over the shock of the event Baileys African History Archive (BAHA) Tom Petrus, author of 'My Life Struggle', Ravan Press. The moral outrage surrounding these events led the United Nations General Assembly to pronounce 21 March as the International Day for the Elimination of Racial . On March 21, 1960. The officers asked the demonstrators to turn around; however, they did not budge. On the morning of 21 March Robert Sobukwe left his house in Mofolo, a suburb of Soweto, and began walking to the Orlando police station. In the following days 77 Africans, many of whom were still in hospital, were arrested for questioning . Other PAC members tried to stop bus drivers from going on duty and this resulted in a lack transport for Sharpeville residents who worked in Vereeniging. Pheko, M. (2000) Focus: 'Lest We Forget Sharpeville', The Sowetan, 20 March. In 1946, the UN established the Commission on Human Rights, whose first job was to draft a declaration on human rights. On March 21, demonstrators disobeyed the pass laws by giving up or burning their pass books. At least 180 were wounded. Mr. Tsolo and other members of the PAC Branch Executive continued to advance - in conformity with the novel PAC motto of "Leaders in Front" - and asked the White policeman in command to let them through so that they could surrender themselves for refusing to carry passes. The Sharpeville Massacre awakened the international community to the horrors of apartheid. Selinah was shot in her leg but survived the massacre. The poet Duncan Livingstone, a Scottish immigrant from the Isle of Mull who lived in Pretoria, wrote in response to the Massacre the Scottish Gaelic poem Bean Dubh a' Caoidh a Fir a Chaidh a Marbhadh leis a' Phoileas ("A Black Woman Mourns her Husband Killed by the Police"). Unlike elsewhere on the East Rand where police used baton when charging at resisters, the police at Sharpeville used live ammunition. The South African government then created the Unlawful Organizations Act of 1960 which banned anti-apartheid groups such as the Pan Africanist Congress and the African National Congress. Early on the 21st the local PAC leaders first gathered in a field not far from the Sharpeville police station, when a sizable crowd of people had joined them they proceeded to the police station - chanting freedom songs and calling out the campaign slogans "Izwe lethu" (Our land); "Awaphele amapasti" (Down with passes); "Sobukwe Sikhokhele" (Lead us Sobukwe); "Forward to Independence,Tomorrow the United States of Africa.". The quest for international support, mass mobilization, armed operations, and underground organization became the basis for the ANCs Four Pillars of Struggle. The Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC), a splinter group of the African National Congress (ANC) created in 1959, organized a countrywide demonstration for March 21, 1960, for the abolition of South Africas pass laws. A new, third level of content, designed specially to meet the advanced needs of the sophisticated scholar. Many others were not so lucky: 69 unarmed and non-violent protesters were gunned down by theSouth Africanpolice and hundreds more were injured. We must listen to them, learn from them, and work with them to build a better future.. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. The police ordered the crowd to disperse within 3 minutes. Other witnesses claimed there was no order to open fire, and the police did not fire a warning shot above the crowd. Our work on the Sustainable Development Goals. They met a police line a few blocks from the Courthouse and were forbidden from proceeding because they did not have a parade permit (Reed 26). The Sharpeville massacre sparked hundreds of mass protests by black South Africans. This march is seen by many as a turning point in South African history. At 13h15 a small scuffle began near the entrance of the police station. "[1] He also denied giving any order to fire and stated that he would not have done so. apartheid: aftermath of the deadly Sharpeville demonstration, This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/event/Sharpeville-massacre, Canadian Museum for Human Rights - The Sharpeville Massacre, South African History Online - Sharpeville Massacre, Sharpeville massacre - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Sharpeville massacre - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). This year, UN and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) joined South Africans in commemorating the 61st anniversary of the Sharpeville massacre, using the flagship campaign #FightRacism to promote awareness of these critical issues. In the late 1980s, one of the most popular anti-apartheid movements that contributed to the end of the apartheid was the Free Mandela campaign. That impact is best broken down into its short-term, medium-term, and long-term significance. This assisted in minimizing unity between the exploited to rally against European control as it backhandedly induced submission for survival. Similarly, African American leaders from the fifties to the sixties also fought for the end of segregation, in cases such as Brown v. Board of Education. In particular, the African work force in the Cape went on strike for a period of two weeks and mass marches were staged in Durban. These resolutions established two important principles: that the human rights provisions in the UN Charter created binding obligations for member states, and that the UN could intervene directly in situations involving serious violations of human rights. The march was also led by Clarence Makwetu, the Secretary of the PACs New Flats branch. The Black Consciousness Movement sparked mass protests among Blacks and prompted other liberation movements to demonstrate against the apartheid. Policemen in Cape Town were forcing Africans back to work with batons and sjamboks, and four people were shot and killed in Durban. The Sharpeville Massacre occurred on March 21, 1960, in the township of Sharpeville, South Africa. The significance of the date is reflected in the fact that it now marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The logjam was only broken after the Sharpeville massacre as the UN decided to deal with the problem of apartheid South Africa. Yet only three policemen were reported to have been hit by stones - and more than 200 Africans were shot down. Significant reshaping of international law is often the result of momentous occurrences, most notably the first and second world wars. (1997) Focus: 'Prisoner 1', Sunday Life, 23 March. The row of graves of the 69 people killed by police at the Sharpeville Police Station on 21 March 1960. International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, "Outside South Africa there were widespread reactions to Sharpeville in many countries which in many cases led to positive action against South Africa"., E.g., "[I]mmediately following the Sharpeville massacre in South Africa, over 1000 students demonstrated in Sydney against the apartheid system"., United Nations Security Council Resolution 610, United Nations Security Council Resolution 615, "The Sharpeville Massacre A watershed in South Africa", "The photos that changed history Ian Berry; Sharpeville Massacre", "Sharpeville Massacre, The Origin of South Africa's Human Rights Day", "Influential religious leader with 70-years in ministry to be laid to rest", "The Sharpeville Massacre - A watershed in South Africa", "Macmillan, Verwoerd and the 1960 'Wind of Change' Speech", "Naming history's forgotten fighters: South Africa's government is setting out to forget some of the alliance who fought against apartheid. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Half a century has passed but memories of the Sharpeville massacre still run deep. According to an account from Humphrey Tyler, the assistant editor at Drum magazine: The police have claimed they were in desperate danger because the crowd was stoning them. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Pass laws intended to control and direct their movement and employment were updated in the 1950s. All the evidence points to the gathering being peaceful and good humoured. Weve been busy, working hard to bring you new features and an updated design. According to his "Testimony about the Launch of the Campaign," Sobukwe declared: To read more witness accounts of the Sharpeville Massacre, click on the, According to an account from Humphrey Tyler, the assistant editor at, Afrikaner Nationalism, Anglo American and Iscor: formation of Highveld Steel and Vanadium Corporation, 1960-70 in Business History", The Sharpeville Massacre: Its historic significance in the struggle against apartheid, The PAC's War against the State 1960-1963, in The Road to Democracy in South Africa: 1960-1970, The Sharpeville Massacre - A watershed in SouthAfrica, Saluting Sharpevilles heroes, and South Africa's human rights, New Books | Robert Sobukwes letters from prison, South African major mass killings timeline 1900-2012, Origins: Formation, Sharpeville and banning, 1959-1960, 1960-1966: The genesis of the armed struggle, Womens resistance in the 1960s - Sharpeville and its aftermath, Eyewitness accounts of the Sharpeville massacre 1960, List of victims of police action, 21 March, 1960 (Sharpeville and Langa), A tragic turning-point: remembering Sharpeville fifty years on by Paul Maylam, Apartheid: Sharpeville Massacre, 21 March 1960, Commission of Enquiry into the Occurrences at Sharpeville (and other places) on the 21st March, 1960, Volume 1, Johannesburg, 15 June 1960, Commission of Enquiry into the Occurrences at Sharpeville (and other places) on the 21st March, 1960, Volume 2, Johannesburg, 15 June 1960, Documents, and articles relating to the Sharpeville Massacre 1960, Editorial comment: The legacy of Sharpeville, From Our Vault: Sharpeville, A Crime That Still Echoes by J Brooks Spector, 21 March 2013, South Africa, Message to the PAC on Sharpeville Day by Livingstone Mqotsi, Notes on the origins of the movement for Sanctions against South Africa by E.S. (2000) Focus: 'Lest We Forget', Sunday World, 19 March. On March 30, the South African government declared a state of emergency which made any protest illegal. The Apartheid was initiated as a ploy for Europeans to better control the exploited populations for economic gain, as maintaining tension between the different racial classifications diverted attention from the Europeans as it fed hatred between groups. What happened on 21 March in Sharpeville? The massacre occurred at the police station in the South African township of Sharpeville, A child demonstrates in front of Johannesburgs city hall after the Sharpeville massacre (AFP/Getty), The aftermath of the Sharpeville massacre, The BritishAnti-Apartheid Movement marks the tenth anniversary of the massacre with a re-enactmentin Trafalgar Square, A family member stands next to a memorial toone of the victims of the Sharpeville massacre ahead of Human Rights Day in 2016 (AFP/Getty), Its been 60 years since dozens of protesters were killed at a peaceful anti-apartheid rally in South Africa. a photographer whose pictures of the killings caused an . Three people were killed and 26 others were injured. The Sharpeville massacre, the name given to the murder of 69 unarmed civilians by armed South African police, took place on 21 March 1960. Eyewitness accounts attest to the fact that the people were given no warning to disperse. On March 21, an estimated 7,000 South Africans gathered in front of the Sharpeville police station to protest against the restrictive pass laws. Confrontation in the township of Sharpeville, Gauteng Province. One way of accomplishing this was by instilling laws thatd force segregation, classification, educational requirements, and economic purposes. When the marchers reached Sharpeville's police station a heavy contingent of policemen were lined up outside, many on top of British-made Saracen armored cars. Max Roach's 1960 Album We Insist! The Sharpeville massacre. Riding into the small group of protestors, they forced most to withdraw, but a few stood fast around a utility pole where horsemen began to beat them. But attempts to transform this non-binding moral declaration into a binding legal code were immediately bogged down in cold war disputes. After demonstrating against pass laws, a crowd of about 7,000 protesters went to the police station. Another officer interpreted this as an order and opened fire, triggering a lethal fusillade as 168 police constables followed his example. About 69 Blacks were killed and more than 180 wounded, some 50 women and children being among the victims. This set the UN on the path towards the recognition of all human rights for all, and, eventually, the establishment of the Human Rights Council, and the Universal Periodic Review of the human rights performance of all states. Early on that March morning, demonstrations against the pass laws, which restricted the rights of apartheid South Africas majority black population, had begun in Sharpeville, a township in Transvaal. the Sharpeville Massacre The 1960 Sharpeville Massacre was the result of a peaceful protest regarding racist South African policies of apartheid. A small donation would help us keep this available to all. It was adopted on 21 December 1965. The movement in this period that revived the political opposition against the apartheid was the Black Consciousness Movement. Many of the contemporary issues in South Africa can easily be associated with the apartheid laws which devastated the country. On March 21, 1960, police in Sharpeville, South Africa, shot hundreds of people protesting laws that restricted the movement of blacks. Often times individuals feel proud to be a member of their group and it becomes an important part of how they view themselves and their identity. The Afrikaner poet Ingrid Jonker mentioned the Sharpeville Massacre in her verse. This article first appeared on The Conversation, Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. The event also played a role in South Africa's departure from the Commonwealth of Nations in 1961. Do you find this information helpful? Due to the illness, removals from Topville began in 1958. Nearly 300 police officers arrived to put an end to the peaceful protest. The Minister of Native Affairs declared that apartheid was a model for the world. When the demonstrators began to throw stones at the police, the police started shooting into the crowd. [10], PAC actively organized to increase turnout to the demonstration, distributing pamphlets and appearing in person to urge people not to go to work on the day of the protest. [17], Not all reactions were negative: embroiled in its opposition to the Civil Rights Movement, the Mississippi House of Representatives voted a resolution supporting the South African government "for its steadfast policy of segregation and the [staunch] adherence to their traditions in the face of overwhelming external agitation. In the Black township of Sharpeville, near Johannesburg, South Africa, Afrikaner police open fire on a group of unarmed Black South African demonstrators, killing 69 people and wounding 180 in a hail of submachine-gun fire. The Sharpeville massacre sparked hundreds of mass protests by black South Africans, many of which were ruthlessly and violently crushed by the South African police and military. The Black resistance began to gain more momentum and increasingly became more threatening. Matthews called on all South Africans to mark a national day of mourning for the victims on the 28 March. [13], A storm of international protest followed the Sharpeville shootings, including sympathetic demonstrations in many countries[14][15] and condemnation by the United Nations. It is likely that the police were quick to fire as two months before the massacre, nine constables had been assaulted and killed, some disembowelled, during a raid at Cato Manor. It was a sad day for black South Africa. The massacre also sparked hundreds of mass protests by black South Africans, many of which were ruthlessly and violently crushed by the South African police and military. He was followed by Dr. Yusuf Dadoo, Chairperson of the South African Indian Congress and Chairperson of the underground South African Communist Party. Initially the police commander refused but much later, approximately 11h00, they were let through; the chanting of freedom songs continued and the slogans were repeated with even greater volume. Participants were instructed to surrender their reference books (passes) and invite arrest. [9] The Sharpeville police were not completely unprepared for the demonstration, as they had already driven smaller groups of more militant activists away the previous night. On 21 March 1960, the police opened fire on a group of demonstrators who had gathered peacefully outside Sharpeville police station in response to a nationwide call by the Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC) to protest against the hated pass system; 67 people died and hundreds more were wounded. But change can also be prompted by seemingly minor events in global affairs, such as the Sharpeville massacre the so-called butterfly effect. It was adopted on December 21 1965. This caused many other countries to criticize South Africas apartheid policy. Everyone should have an equal rights and better community . It is also a day to reflect on the progress that has been made in ensuring basic human rights for all South Africans, as enshrined in our Constitution. That day about 20,000 people gathered near the Sharpeville police station. Witness History. The ban remained in effect until August 31, 1960. But it was not until after Sharpeville that the UN made clear that the countrys system of racial segregation would no longer be tolerated. The apartheid in South Africa which was in effect from 1948 until 1994 was not only a racist policy which greatly affected the quality of life of minorities in the country for the worse but was a outright crime against humanity. OHCHRs regional representative Abigail Noko used the opportunity to call on all decision-makers to give youth a seat at the decision-making table. As well as the introduction of the Race Convention, Sharpeville also spurred other moves at the UN that changed the way it could act against countries that breached an individuals human rights. As they attempted to disperse the crowd, a police officer was knocked down and many in the crowd began to move forward to see what had happened. Expert Answers. A posseman. All the evidence points to the gathering being peaceful and good-humoured. By lunchtime, the crowd outside the police station had grown to an estimated 20,000 people. The police response to the protest became the primary cause of the massacre. Philip H. Frankel, An Ordinary Atrocity: Sharpeville and its Massacre (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001); Henry F. Jackson, From the Congo to Soweto: U.S. Foreign Policy Toward Africa Since 1960 (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1982); Meredith Martin, The History of Apartheid: The Story of the Colour War in South Africa (New York: London House & Maxwell, 1962). By lunchtime, the crowd outside the police station had grown to an estimated 20,000 people. But change can also be prompted by seemingly minor events in global affairs such as the Sharpeville massacre the so-called butterfly effect. The argument against apartheid was now framed as a specific manifestation of a wider battle for human rights, and it was the only political system mentioned in the convention: Nazism and antisemitism were not included. These protestors included a large number of northern college students. Other evidence given to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission "the evidence of Commission deponents reveals a degree of deliberation in the decision to open fire at Sharpeville and indicates that the shooting was more than the result of inexperienced and frightened police officers losing their nerve. The protesters responded by hurling stones (striking three policemen) and rushing the police barricades. There was no evidence that anyone in the gathering was armed with anything other than stones. The incident resulted in the largest number of South African deaths (up to that point) in a protest against apartheid. In March 1960, South African police shot dead 69 black protestors, sparking worldwide outrage . Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. After apartheid ended, President Nelson Mandela chose Sharpeville as the place to sign South Africas new constitution on December 10, 1996. Langa Township was gripped by tension and in the turmoil that ensued, In the violence that followed an employee of the Cape Times newspaper Richard Lombard was killed by the rioting crowd. The term human rights was first used in the UN Charter in 1945. The Sharpeville massacre was a turning point in South African history. By mid-day approximately 300 armed policemen faced a crowd of approximately 5000 people. Attending a protest in peaceful defiance of the apartheid regime, Selinah and many other young people were demonstrating against pass laws designed to restrict and control the movement and employment of millions of Black South Africans. UNESCO marks 21 March as the yearly International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, in memory of the massacre. BlackPast.org is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and our EIN is 26-1625373. However, the police simply took down the protesters names and did not arrest anyone. That date now marks the International Day for the. This affirmed that the elimination of racial discrimination was a global challenge that affronted the respect and dignity of all human beings. Racial and religious conflicts; conflicts between dictatorial governments and their citizens; the battle between the sexes; conflicts between management and labor; and conflicts between heterosexuals and homosexuals all stem, in whole or in part, to oppression. Significant reshaping of international law is often the result of momentous occurrences, most notably the two world wars. According to his "Testimony about the Launch of the Campaign," Sobukwe declared: At the press conference Sobukwe emphasized that the campaign should be conducted in a spirit of absolute non-violence and that the PAC saw it as the first step in Black people's bid for total independence and freedom by 1963 (Cape Times, 1960). The South African government began arresting more nonconformists and banning resistance organizations, such as the African National Congress and the Pan African Congress. It authorized the limited use of arms and sabotage against the government, which got the governments attentionand its anger! The event was an inspiration for painter Oliver Lee Jackson in his Sharpeville Series from the 1970s.[23]. But in the aftermath of the Sharpeville massacre, the UN adopted a more interventionist stance to the apartheid state. These laws restricted blacks movements within the country. A lot of Afrikaners felt a sense of guilt for the behavior they allowed to happen from their race towards another. Many people need to know that indiviual have their own rights in laws and freedom . Under this system there was an extended period of gruesome violence against individuals of colored skin in South Africa. Early in 1960 both the ANC and PAC embarked on a feverish drive to prepare their members and Black communities for the proposed nationwide campaigns. The people were throwing their hats to the aeroplanes. [12], Many White South Africans were also horrified by the massacre. Let's Take Action Towards the Sustainable Development Goals. In 1946, the UN established the Commission on Human Rights, whose first job was to draft a declaration on human rights. By 1960 the. [10] Few of the policemen present had received public order training. Later, in the fifties and the sixties, these same goals, enlign poll taxes and literacy tests, were once again fought for by African American leaders, through advocacy and agitation. The apartheid system forcefully suppressed any resistance, such as at Sharpeville on March 21 1960, when 69 blacks were killed, and the Soweto Riots 1976-77, when 576 people died. A robust humanrights framework is the only way to provide a remedy for those injustices, tackle inequality and underlying structural differences, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The incident resulted in the largest number of South African deaths (up to that point) in a protest against apartheid . Forego a bottle of soda and donate its cost to us for the information you just learned, and feel good about helping to make it available to everyone. I will argue that the massacre created a major short-term crisis for the apartheid state, a crisis which appeared to [7][8], On 21 March, 1960, a group of between 5,000 and 10,000 people converged on the local police station, offering themselves up for arrest for not carrying their passbooks. At its inaugural session in 1947, the UN Commission on Human Rights had decided that it had no power to take any action in regard to any complaints concerning human rights. As the number of UN members from Africa increased, the commission reversed its no power to act position and turned its attention to the human rights situation in South Africa. On that day, demonstrations against the pass laws, which restricted the rights of the majority black population in apartheid South Africa, began in the early morning in Sharpeville, a township in Transvaal. Kgosana agreed to disperse the protestors in if a meeting with J B Vorster, then Minister of Justice, could be secured. Furthermore, a new police station was created, from which the police were energetic to check passes, deporting illegal residents, and raiding illegal shebeens. The PAC organised demonstration attracted between 5,000 and 7,000 protesters. Race, ethnicity and political groups, is an example of this.

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