Origins of Apartheid

• Southern Africa had been colonised by the Dutch and British
• The discovery of diamonds in 1867 and gold in 1886 caused an industrial revolution, but also introduced strict systems of control over black mineworkers
• Black workers lived in compounds and were controlled by a system of passes
• The Union of South Africa was formed by 4 British colonies in 1910, where white South Africans (often British or Dutch Afrikaners) had dominion
• In 3 of the 4 South African provinces, only white men could vote
• Pass laws controlled where Africans could live or work to limit movement from rural areas to the cities. Every African male had to carry a pass book at all times or face arrest and jailtime
• Africans in urban areas had to live in townships with poor housing and amenities. They were far from workplaces and expensive for inhabitants
• A 'colour bar' reserved skilled jobs in mines and factories for white workers. It also stopped black workers from striking and joining unions
• The 'civilised labour' policy protected white workers in the economy by giving them preference in government jobs
• The 1913 Land Act set aside 7% of South African land, which were the only placed Africans could own land. This was expanded in 1936 when tribal councils were set up for the reserves, ensuring segregated legal and administrative systems
• The South African constitution only gave whites the right to vote
• In 1936, Africans in the Cape lost the right to vote and were represented in government by a Natives' Representative Council (NRC) in a limited advisory capacity
• In September 1939, Jan Smuts formed a wartime coalition to declare war on Germany. Mot English-speaking voters supported this, but some radical Afrikaners thought Smuts had chosen the wrong side
• During WW2, segregation broke down as there was a shortage of industrial labour, causing the colour bar and pass laws to be relaxed
• Black workers striked after the war demanding union recognition, the right to strike, minimum wages, safer working conditions and better living conditions
• The 1946 Mineworkers' Strike involved 75 000 Witwatersrand gold mine workers. 12 were killed and 1 000 were injured
• White voters criticised the government for postwar economic problems and soldiers were angry that their jobs had been filled by black workers
• White voters lost confidence in the ruling United Party
• The National Party promised a policy of 'apartheid', the complete separation of races in South Africa, with white dominion. The idea had been developed by Afrikaner intellectuals in the 1930s
• The National Party's campaign referred to the Black Peril (Swart Gevaar)
• In the 1948 election, the National Party won the majority of seats and 37% of the popular vote