1983-1994

• UDF stood for United Democratic Front, it was a coalition of 575 organisations all allied through their vehement dislike of the structural reforms as implemented by Botha. These included the Tricameral parliament, which when it was announced was seen as a blatant disregard of Black lives as coloureds and indians had now political mobility, a purposeful leaving out Africans.
• The UDF focussed on "people power" and nation building striking a chord with all races, ages and classes. It embodied a form of neo-charterism.
• UDF was banned in 1988 under the State of Emergency (established in 1986), but this was hard to implement due to the federal structure.
• The UDF was rebranded as the Mass Democratic Movement, this did not help them as when the ANC was unbanned in 1990 they were upstaged and they were no longer the bastion of charterism. This led to a chnage of focus onto development, this estranged activists though. 14 UDF board office-holders joined the ANC's National Executive Committee.
• The UDF disbanded in 1991, and the SACP replaced them in the tripartite alliance headed by the ANC.
• The UDF only gained promenece due to the absence of the ANC, they were a sort of interim replacement, thus when the ANC were unbanned they had no use.
• UDF membership was thought to have been 2 million people.
• The number of days lost due to strikes grew from 1 million in 1986 to 6 million in 1987, due to UDF action.
• COSAS (Congress Of South African Students) was created in 1979 after Soweto, and organised school boycotts, but this meant black children fell further behind.
• NECC (National Education Crisis Committee) formed in 1986 to provide alternative education to encourage students back to school.
• In 1983/84, UDF groups campaigned to collect a million signatures for a mass petition against the proposed new constitution and African local government. Less than 12% of Africans voted in the election for the new community council.
• The community council act of 1977 created elected township councils. This had the intention of giving local people more control over their local area and calm down the attacks against white officials by making them black (but still collaborators). This was so extended that in 1982, these African councillors were solely responsible for running townships.
• Community Councils meant that Townships had to raise their own revenues which meant rent was increased in social housing further afflicting the poor Africans and resulting in renter riots and tension in between Africans.
• The UDF organised "people's organs, people's power" protests using local organisations to plan rent strikes. By 1989, rent arrears were R500,000.
• The ANC used flags and incendiary speeches alongside their anthem of "God Bless africa" to spark outrage and rally new militants and amplify the martyrdom status of those lives lost for the opposition force.
• 175 people were killed in 1984 during violent demonstrations against rent increases across Pretoria and Vereeniging. Necklacing and lynching was the fashion, Black on Black violence soared.
• In 1985 alone , over 800 people were killed as a result of political activity.
• Inkatha were a Zulu political party and militia led by Chief Buthelezi.
• Chief Buthelezi was fundamentally anti-communism, he at first disliked apartheid. However once he realised that the abolishment of apartheid would mean the loss of his power he began to change his tune, speaking of a federated South Africa, not equal just where Zulu people had advantages under his unlimited leadership - an idea which aligned with the bantustan principle.
• Buthelezi grew distant of the ANC, and sided with the National Party to achieve his aims. He was stoned during Sobukwe's funeral in 1978. In 1979, the ANC and Inkatha held a conference to iron out any issues, but this failed and in fact increased hostilities.
• Buthelezi feared the loss of influence when the government consulted other groups other than his own Zulus. He ordered that all Zulus were Inkatha, and formed the largest political party making KwaZulu into a one party state. Buthelezi took on the role of police chief in KwaZulu and endorsed violence against ANC and UDF.
• There was a conflict between barrack-hostel transient workers and resident of townships, this came to embody the conflict between IFP and ANC as the township residents favoured the ANC. Many feared that this would snowball into Civil War.
• In 1984, the security state organised the assassination of the "Cradock Four" anti-apartheid activists.
• In 1987, the security state were accused of bombing the COSATU HQ on the basis that it was harbouring MK members.
• The Civilian Cooperation Bureau was established in 1987 to identify "enemies of the state" after which the security forces would act, for example, by assassinating David webster in May 1987.
• Crowbar were a special-forces group founded in 1979 o fight SWAPO (South West African people's Organisation) in Namibia.
• In 1986, 500 black people were shot dead by the police, and carried out 40 political assassinations. Raiding neighbouring countries was also common.
• In 1982, the security state bombed the ANC HQ in london.
• The Third Force were members of security forces who worked with vigilantes to undermine attempts of negotiations by stirring up trouble. Many believe that this was done without central knowledge and was by local initiative.
• Inkathagate was a scandal broken in 1991, alleging that security forces were helping and giving weapons to the IFP, so that they could murder ANC members. Destabilising areas such as the Vaal Triangle.
• Security forces promoted vigilante groups, who took responsibility for 90% of deaths related to unrest. One gang called Phakatis terrorised those supporting school boycotts in the Orange Free State.
• In 1988, vigilante groups were blamed for the 1200 deaths in Edendale valley, a centre of ANC support.
• Internal Security Act 1982, gave powers to ban anyone and investigate without specifying a reason.
• Censorship was extended through the Inquest Act 1982, which outlawed the reporting of deaths in custody or criticism of the police under a Police act.
• South Africa continued military action such as trying to replace the MPLA (People's movement for the liberation of Angola) with a more amiable UNITA (National union for the Total independence of Angola).
• In late 1986, MPLA and Cuban allies launched an offensive to destroy South Africa UNITA. SADF responded by laying siege to a military base called Cuito Cuanavale in 1988. After a sticky situation though, the South African government negotiated a truce under which SADF left Angola so long as MPLA closed SWAPO bases there.
• The FRELIMO regime in Mozambique came to an agreement with South Africa in 1984 in the NKomati Accords which commited FRELIMO to close ANC bases in the country in return for South Africa ceasing to support opposition groups ther. This meant that the SADF had respite from warfare and also benefitted counter-ANC action as the bases were closed cutting SWAPO also.
• After the failure of his Total Strategy, Botha was forced to reform. It failed due to South Africa's economy, media coverage, no end to township violence, and security forces seeming weak against the like of the ANC.
• Inflation rose from 11% in 1983 to 18% in 1986.
• Number of terrorist incidents per year sextupled by 1988.