Sharpeville massacre

Remember Sharpeville

The Sharpeville Massacre is remembered annually on 21 March - Human Rights Day. In order to pay tribute to those who lost their lives on this day, it is essential that we have an understanding of the context in which this event occurred. The year 1960 was a fateful year period for South Africa, and one that was to be inherent steeped in racial conflict, as foreseen in Harold Macmillian’s “winds of change” speech.

During the 1950’s, the apartheid government was continually introducing new means methods to suppress the liberation struggle. Many members of the African National Congress (ANC) had become impatient with the inability of peaceful protests, which failed to achieve results, and therefore broke away to form the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC). The reasons cited by many sources for this split are that the PAC promulgated policies that were contrary to the multi-racial policies of the ANC and that members were frustrated by the moderate nature of the ANC, expressed in the Freedom Charter in 1955.

The PAC largely owed its formation largely to Robert Sobukwe, a charismatic leader who was praised for his intellect. His leadership of the PAC was based on a vision of an ‘Africa for Africans’ movement, which promoted mass action against discrimination. It is inaccurate to say however that Sobukwe’s Africanism was ‘racial’ or in direct opposition to the ANC’s ‘multi-racial policies’. Sobukwe, believed that instead of adopting a policy of ‘multi-racialism’, or a party made up of different groups, those wanting to join the PAC should do so on an individual or ‘non-racial’ basis in united support for an African movement.

This standpoint is supported by an extract from Sobukwe’s inaugural speech given when the PAC was formed in 1959, and which advocated “non-racialism”:

"Further, multi-racialism is in fact a pandering to European bigotry and arrogance. It is a method of safeguarding white interests, implying as it does, proportional representation irrespective of population figures. In that sense it is a complete negation of democracy.

To us the term "multi-racialism" implies that there are such basic insuperable differences between the various national groups here that the best course is to keep them permanently distinctive in a kind of democratic apartheid. That, to us, is racialism multiplied, which probably is what the term truly connotes.  We aim, politically, at government of the Africans by the Africans, for the Africans, with everybody who owes his only loyalty to Africa and who is prepared to accept the democratic rule of an African majority being regarded as an African.

We guarantee no minority rights, because we think in terms of individuals, not groups."

The PAC became a rival of the ANC in search for support, and this led to a strong competition. Therefore, when the ANC announced that it was planning an anti-pass campaign on the 31 March 1960, the PAC decided to pre-empt the ANC’s efforts by planning a similar protest for the 21 March.

On this date, PAC supporters were to voluntarily leave their passes at home and offer themselves up for arrest at the nearest police station. Protests took place in Sharpeville and in the Western Cape in townships such as Langa.

According to PAC leader Robert Sobukwe’s ‘Testimony about the Launch of the Campaign’:

...the campaign was made known on the 18th of March. Circulars were printed and distributed to the members of the organisation and on the 21st of March, on Monday, in obedience to a resolution they had taken, the members of the Pan Africanist Congress surrendered themselves at various police stations around the Country.

Although the protest was anticipated, no one could have predicted the consequences and the repercussions this would have for South African and world politics. An article entitled ‘PAC Campaign will be test’, published in the 19 March 1960 issue of Contact, describes the build up to the campaign:

...the Pan Africanist Congress will shortly launch a nationwide campaign for the total abolition of the pass laws. The exact date on which the campaign will start is still unknown. The decision lies with the P.A.C. president, Mr. R.M. Sobukwe. But members say that the campaign will begin ‘shortly - within a matter of weeks

Despite the non-violent nature of the campaign, protestors were met with violent opposition from armed policemen, who were jittery after a recent event in Durban where nine policemen were shot. The police panicked at the sight of thousands of protesters at Sharpeville and shot into the crowd. This violent outburst killed 69 people, and injured 180 people. In Langa, two people were shot dead.

Eyewitness accounts attest to the unnecessary violence and the inhumane manner in which the crowd was sprayed with gunfire without any warnings to disperse. The presence of armoured vehicles also points to unnecessary provocation, especially when the crowd was unarmed and determined to stage a non-violent protest.

According to an account from Humphrey Tyler, the assistant editor at Drum magazine,

“The police have claimed they were in desperate danger because the crowd was stoning them. Yet only three policemen were reported to have been hit by stones - and more than 200 Africans were shot down. The police also have said that the crowd was armed with 'ferocious weapons', which littered the compound after they fled.

I saw no weapons, although I looked very carefully, and afterwards studied the photographs of the death scene. While I was there I saw only shoes, hats and a few bicycles left among the bodies. The crowd gave me no reason to feel scared, though I moved among them without any distinguishing mark to protect me, quite obvious with my white skin. I think the police were scared though, and I think the crowd knew it.”

To read more personal accounts as described by witnesses of the Sharpeville Massacre, click on the 'Accounts of the event' tab above.

The Reasons for the Sharpeville Demonstrations

The demonstrations at Sharpeville were mainly concerned with voicing protest against the pass laws (see insert). These pass books included a photograph, details of the person’s place of birth, employment records, tax payments, and criminal record. These laws effectively limited freedom of movement, as pass books had to contain stamps providing official proof that the particular person had permission to be in whichever urban area they were visiting.

These laws were initially placed on men, but were soon extended to women. The extension intensified the experience of humiliation and discrimination, especially as women feared they would be manhandled by the police and other officials.

The pass laws were met with fierce resistance during the 20th century. But earlier forms of passes, had in fact been used in various instances since the 1700s, when slaves in the Cape were forced to carry “permission” documents. This regime of control was later extended to migrant workers on the mines, their movements restricted to the mining compounds. Pass laws have been resisted in several significant instances.

Examples of these include the 1918 workers’ strike, a women’s anti-pass campaign organised by the Bantu Women’s League, and pass-burning campaigns organised during the 1930s by the Communist party and trade unions.

More proactive opposition to discrimination became necessary after the National Party came to power in 1948, and racial segregation and discrimination was intensified through the implementation of the National Party’s policy of ‘“apartheid’,” or separate development.

Resistance to the pass laws intensified during the 1950s, and various protests took place. These included protests by the ANC Women’s League in 1950, and the women’s march to the Union Buildings in August 1956, which is now commemorated each year as Women’s Day.

The anti-pass campaign that culminated in the Sharpeville Massacre was the consequence of years of discriminatory treatment, which was made even more outrageous by brutal from the police.

Initiated by the PAC, the protest was intended to be non-violent, and none of the protestors took up arms. Robert Sobukwe, leader of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) who advocated resistance against this discriminatory treatment, stressed the non-violent nature of the protest.

An extract from his speech on the eve of the anti-pass campaign attests to this: 

“The African people have entrusted their whole future to us. And we have sworn that we are leading them, not to death, but to life abundant. My instructions, therefore, are that our people must be taught now and continuously that in this campaign we are going to observe absolute non-violence.”

However, besides resistance against the pass laws, the Sharpeville demonstrations were meant to highlight other grievances. These included low wages and high rents in the townships. Low wages were the norm, reinforced by the fact that Black trade unions were not legally recognised and could not negotiate with employers. The ‘colour bar’, or job reservation for whites, also ruled out higher paying skilled jobs for black people, and black employees were largely restricted to the low-wage labour force.

The Consequences

The violent massacre was reported worldwide, and received with horror from every quarter. South Africa had already been harshly criticised for its apartheid policies, and this incident fuelled anti-apartheid sentiments as the international conscience was deeply stirred.

The United Nations Security Council and governments worldwide condemned the police action and the apartheid policies which prompted this violent assault. International sympathy lay with the African people, leading to an economic slump as international investors withdrew from South Africa and share prices on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange plummeted.

Chief Albert Luthuli and Professor Z.K. Matthews called for a national day of mourning, encouraging a stay-away which took place on 28 March 1960. Luthuli and several others ceremoniously burnt their pass books, and the pass laws were suspended – although only for a while. Mass funerals were held for the victims, and rioting took place in Johannesburg townships and Worcester in the Cape to voice anger against the incident. Foreign Consulates were flooded with requests for emigration, and fearful White South Africans armed themselves. The ANC then sent its Vice-President Oliver Tambo abroad to act as a ‘roving ambassador’. He traveled without a passport, and visited several African countries, as well as England and the USA to gain support. 

Dr. Verwoerd praised the police for their actions and Mr. De Wet Nel declared that race relations in South Africa had never been better. However, on 30 March 1960 the government declared a state of emergency. Mass arrests began and almost all African leaders were imprisoned. Policemen in Cape Town were forcing Africans back to work with batons and sjamboks, and four people were shot and killed in Durban.

Amidst all the upheaval Philip Kgosana led a spontaneous march to Parliament in Cape Town. After dispersing the crowd in a peaceful manner, he was arrested. The African work force in the Cape went on strike for a period of two weeks and mass marches were staged in Durban. The police and army arrested thousands of Africans, who were imprisoned with their leaders, but still the mass action raged. By 9 April the death toll had risen to 83 non-white civilians and three non-white police officers. Twenty six black policemen and 365 black civilians were injured – no white police men were killed and only 60 were injured.

The Minister of Native Affairs declared that apartheid was a model for the world. The Minister of Justice called for calm and the Minister of Finance encouraged immigration. The only Minister who showed any misgivings regarding government policy was Paul Sauer. His protest was ignored, and the government turned a blind eye to the increasing protests from industrialists and leaders of commerce. A deranged White man, David Pratt, made an assassination attempt on Dr. Verwoerd, who was seriously injured. The ANC called for a renewed effort in the struggle against pass laws.

Sobukwe and other leaders were arrested and detained after the Sharpeville Massacre, some for nearly three years after the incident. Sobukwe was only released in 1969. After the state of emergency was declared the ANC and the PAC were banned under the Unlawful Organisations Act on 8 April 1960. Both organisations were deemed a serious threat to the safety of the public and the vote stood at 128 to 16 in favour of the banning. Only the four Native Representatives and members of the new Progressive Party voted against the Bill.

Under the Suppression of Communism Act the penalty for furthering the aims of unlawful organisations was imprisonment for up to ten years. The ANC and PAC were therefore forced underground. The ANC's last legal action was to call for a National Convention to lay the foundation for a new Union of South Africa. However, nearly all members of the militant opposition had been detained. The Sharpeville Massacre was therefore a turning point in the struggle for liberation, which was soon to take a more militant form, with the formation of Umkhonto we Sizwe in 1961.

References:

• Apartheid Legislation in South Africa [online], Available at: africanhistory.about.com [accessed 10 March 2009]
• A short history of pass laws in South Africa [online], Available at: sahistory.org.za [accessed 11 March 2009]  
• Historical Papers Archive of the University of the Witwatersrand [online] Accessed at: wits.ac.za and SAHA archive [link no longer available]
• Pan African Congress [online] Available at: pac.org.za [Accessed 5 March 2009]
• Giliomee et al. (2007), New History of South Africa. Tafelberg Publishers: Cape Town. p. 334- 336
• Muller, Prof CFJ. (1981) 500 years: A History of South Africa. Third Revised and Illustrated Edition. Published by H. & R. Academia: Pretoria. p. 499, 500
• Author unknown (1960), The Sharpeville Massacre, TIME magazine online, 4 April
• History of the African National Congress [online], available at: sahistory.org.za [accessed 10 March 2009]
• History of the Pan Africanist Congress [online], available at: sahistory.org.za [accessed 10 March 2009]
• Sharpeville Massacre, The Origin of South Africa's Human Rights Day [online], available at: africanhistory.about.com [accessed 10 March 2009]
• Reverend Ambrose Reeves (1966), The Sharpeville Massacre - A watershed in South Africa. Article available from SAHO archive.