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, D…

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 t…

The National Party in the form of its leader, FW de Klerk, appeared before the Truth Commission in Cape Town in August 1996 and May 1997. De Klerk accepted responsibility for the wrongs in South Africa while he was president from 1989 to 1994. He admitted to authorising certain operations against the liberation movements. But those operations, said…

Former President Nelson Mandela was South Africa’s first democratically elected Head of State. His five-year presidency from 1994 to 1999 was regarded as one of reconciliation by both black and white South Africans. The people’s president was revered the world over for his fight against apartheid and commitment towards liberating all South Africans…

Nelson Mandela spent most of his life fighting the colour-based injustice of the apartheid system. But he also came to appreciate colour differences - not of the skin, but of his surroundings. The palette of his life was characterised by a range of shades, tones and hues. In this edited version of a speech that Mandela delivered in 2003, he recalle…

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 commitme…

The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s first-ever partial event hearing took place at the Regina Mundi Catholic Church in Soweto in mid-July 1996. The focus was the twentieth anniversary of the June 16 Soweto uprising – the day thousands of black children revolted against the apartheid system of Bantu Education and Afrikaans as the…

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 © SABC 2021. No unauthorised use, copying, adaptation or reprodu…

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 © SABC 2021. No …

He was unknown to the Security Police at Vlakplaas near Pretoria until they were told to "make a plan" with him. Several banning orders, long days in detention and a spell on Robben Island had failed to break his spirit and crush his fight against apartheid. He was Griffiths Mxenge, the human rights lawyer who vigorously defended ANC comrades. So t…

They became known as the Cradock Four: Matthew Goniwe, Fort Calata, Sparrow Mkhonto and Sicelo Mhlauli. On the 27th of June 1985, these four men left the small Eastern Cape town of Cradock for a meeting of the United Democratic Front in Port Elizabeth. A few days later, their mutilated and charred bodies were found in the bush outside the city. Con…

The media painted him as the arch-villain of the apartheid era and labelled him "Prime Evil". The Truth Commission singled him out as the man who broke the code of silence and forced security policemen to seek amnesty. He was Eugene de Kock, former commander of the Vlakplaas death squad, convicted murderer serving two life sentences and 212 years i…

The apartheid government’s top-secret Chemical and Biological Warfare Programme sealed the Truth Commission’s investigations into gross human rights abuses on the 31st of July 1998. South Africans and the world listened with disbelief and then shock to a group of doctors who perverted science to entrench white supremacy. Truth Commission Chairperso…

One incident that pushed South Africa to the brink of anarchy was the assassination of Communist Party leader Chris Hani. Millions loved him for his role in the ANC's armed wing, his militant speeches against white supremacy and his promise to uplift the poor. For these same reasons, apartheid supporters detested him. And on the 10th of April 1993,…

The Truth Commission was a bitter pill to swallow for the family of black consciousness leader Steve Bantu Biko. But it was even harder for them to accept when five former security policemen applied for amnesty in 1997 for "causing" Biko's death 20 years earlier. It seemed as if Biko's killers would finally tell the truth about how he suffered brai…

Convicted former president PW Botha was the one crucial apartheid politician who could have shed more light on the official sanctioning of gross human rights violations. Botha chaired the State Security Council from 1978 to 1989. But instead of succumbing to the Truth Commission, Botha chose to face the court system for eight months and lost. Georg…

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…

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. ©…

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 © SABC 2020. No unauthorised use, copying, adaptation or reproduction permitted without prior written consent …

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 ow…

Professor Phillip Tobias was regarded as one of the world's outstanding intellectuals, who had an incredible ability to demystify science. Tobias taught over ten-thousand students and led ground-breaking research into the origin of humankind.Credits: Angie Kapelianis, Jedi Ramalapa, Sias Scott, the SABC Archives and Wits TV.© SABC 2020. No unauthor…

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 view…

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 libra…

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 bre…

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 th…

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. © SABC 2020. No unauthorised use, copying, adaptation or reproduction perm…

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, Raym…

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,…

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 Do…

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. © SABC 2020. No unauthorised use, copying, adaptat…

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. © SABC 2020. No unauthorised use, copying, adaptation or reproduction permitted without prior written consent of the SABC.…

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. © SABC 2020. No unauthorised use, copying, adaptation or reproduction permitted without prior written consent …

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 S…

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 commitme…

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 Su…

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 fo…

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 succee…

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, w…

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 poli…

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 enoug…

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…

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 p…

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 cont…

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 fo…

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 bir…