Why did Mandela give his speech?
Why did Mandela give his speech?
Before the trial, Mandela and the other defendants decided that instead of testifying as witnesses and submitting to cross-examination he would make a speech from the dock to put the state on trial, by pointing out the injustices of the South African society and its legal system.
What was the Groote Schuur Minute?
Groote Schuur Minute (May 2, 1990) — Among other things, this document established a working group to look into the release of political prisoners and the granting of immunity for political crimes. The government of South Africa agreed to review security legislation and to work towards lifting the state of emergency.
Was FW de Klerk a president?
de Klerk. Frederik Willem de Klerk OMG DMS (/də ˈklɜːrk, də ˈklɛərk/, Afrikaans: [ˈfriədərək ˈvələm də ˈklɛrk], 18 March 1936 – 11 November 2021) was a South African politician and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who served as state president of South Africa from 1989 to 1994 and as deputy president from 1994 to 1996.
What happened on February 11th in history?
This Day in History: February 11 On this day in 1858 in Lourdes, France, 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous, a miller’s daughter, first had visions of the Virgin Mary that were authenticated by Pope Pius IX in 1862, initiating the cult of Our Lady of Lourdes.
Who wrote the apartheid laws?
The Bills proposed by General Barry Hertzog in the 1920s finally got the two-thirds majority required to be passed into law 1936, when the Development Trust and Land Act (also referred to as the Native Trust and Land Act and Bantu Trust and Land Act) and the Representation of Natives Act were enacted.
What was the significance of the de Klerk speech?
On 2 February 1990, a speech was delivered by then President FW de Klerk that marked the beginning of a radically new political landscape for South Africa.
Did de Klerk have a ‘Damascene moment’?
Within three months the first bilateral talks between the ANC and the De Klerk government happened. De Klerk’s speech that day has often been portrayed as having happened because of a Damascene moment on his part: that is that he suddenly had a blinding insight that apartheid was bad.
What did FW de Klerk do in 1994?
In 1993, he publicly apologised for apartheid’s harmful effects, although not for apartheid itself. He oversaw the 1994 non-racial election in which Mandela led the African National Congress to victory; de Klerk’s National Party took second place with 20% of the vote.
What did Fikile de Klerk do for South Africa?
In his opening address to parliament, De Klerk unbanned the exiled liberation movements, notably the African National Congress (ANC), Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC) and South African Communist Party (SACP). All had been embroiled in a fight against white minority rule.
