Timeline (1990-4)

• 1990 February: ANC unbanned, Mandela released and De Klerk announces he will end apartheid - Mandela insists on full democratic elections
• 1990 March: Namibia gained independence from South Africa
• 1990 June: Repeal of Separate Amenities Act
• 1990 August: National Party becomes non-racial and the ANC suspends violence
• 1990 October: Separate Amenities Act repealed; NP allowed people of all races to be members
• 1991 April: EC decided to end sanctions
• 1991 June: Repeal of Group Areas Act and Population Registration Act
• 1991 July: USA ended sanctions, the Cricket boycott ended and South Africa was allowed back into the Olympics
• 1991 December: Convention for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA) set up
• 1992 March: White Referendum; 70% white voters supported new constitution and reform talk, proved NP wasn’t losing power
• 1992 June: Boipatong Massacre; 42 people killed at Boipatong squatter camp by Inkatha supporters brought by police - ANC broke CODESA talks, with trade unions and communists showing mass support
• 1992 August: 4 million people stopped work during a 2-day strike over the massacre; the nation stood still
• 1992 September: Bishop Massacre in Ciskei; ANC march led to 28 deaths and 200 injuries; fury arose, and there was a deadlock in talks, Mandela-De Klerk Summit Meeting; signed a Record of Understanding: agreed on drafting a new constitution, interim government, independent group would study police action, hostel fencing to protect inmates, and ban on Zulu weapons at rallies but Chief Buthelezi accused De Klerk of betraying him and breaking relations as fencing hostels was making Zulu concentration camps
• 1992 December: De Klerk purges the security forces
• 1993 February: All adults eligible to vote; 5% of total vote counted for new cabinet representation, a five-year national unity government which would share power with whites eased nervousness (compromise by Chris Hani)
• 1993 March: CODESA talks resume
• 1993 April: Chris Hani murdered (leader of communist party) murdered by a white right-wing
• 1993 July: Inkatha and Conservative Party walk out of CODESA talks
• 1993 November: Kempton Park agreement on draft constitution and elections
• 1994 April: Democratic elections, resulting in Mandela becoming President
• Urgent agreement needed to control violence and economy slump (almost half of workforce, mostly black, out of work and 3 million uneducated youths of 'lost generation') so election set on 27 April 1994, disapproval from conservative party and Chief Buthelezi but the Inkatha's in their homeland were important, nearly a quarter of all South Africans lived there (8.5mil Zulus - biggest tribe) - the ANC could win election alone without Zulu support but couldn’t unite the nation, and KwaZulu's could claim independence