Church leaders against Apartheid

• Desmond Tutu, Beyers Naude, Allan Boesak and Frank Chikane were important church leaders who opposed Apartheid.
• Church leaders opposed Apartheid due to concern for the lives of the people and their perception of Apartheid as fundamentally unchristian.
• Allan Boesak played a key role in forming the UDF and was a leader in the Dutch Reformed Mission Church.
• Beyers Naude was initially a minister of the Dutch Reformed Church, however he reformed to become a vocal critic of Apartheid as a church leader.
• In 1961, Beyers Naude founded the Christian Institute.
• Desmund Tutu was an angilican priest who Emphasised non-violent resistance, challenging the moral legitimacy of Apartheid. He advocated for international sanctions and won a noble peace prize in 1984.
• The South African Council of Churches (SACC) supported anti-Apartheid activities: it also refused to condemn the violence as a means of ending Apartheid.
• Archbishop Desmond Tutu was general secretary of the SACC. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in 1984 and used his position and popularity to denounce the government and its policies.
• In 1988, Tutu and a number of other church leaders were arrested during a protest in front of the parliamentary buildings in Cape Town.
• Alan Boesak led the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. He was very influential in founding the UDF.
• Boesak was jailed for a month after organising a march demanding the release of Nelson Mandela.
• Beyers Naude left the pro-Apartheid Dutch Reform Church and founded the Christian Institute of Southern Africa. He was banned by the government in 1977.
• Church leaders were not totally free from prosecution, but they were able to criticise the government more freely than the leaders of militant groups.