Discuss the implications Apartheid had on South Africa.

Apartheid is a term which is recognised throughout history and politics. South Africa’s dark history

stems to this political enforcement which has become one of the main characteristics of South

African history both nationally and internationally. The purpose of this essay is to define apartheid

and discuss the political and social implications that Apartheid had on South Africa by focussing on

aspects such as political isolation and social unrest, such as the Sharpeville Massacre.

Before the implications are highlighted it is important to understand what is meant by the term

Apartheid. Apartheid literally means ‘being apart’ (ref) and refers to the legislation that was in place

in South Africa in 1948 by the leading party, the National Party (NP). This legalised racial division in

the country. South Africans were separated into four main groups being the whites, coloured,

natives and Indians1. The level of separation is illustrated through the legislation passed. This

includes the Mixed Marriages Act which was passed in 1948 that prohibited races being legally

wedded while the Group Areas Act passed in 1950 ensured that all races were allocated designated

living areas.2

As this legislation was passed, it was clear the ruling government led by the NP were not too

concerned about the political implications Apartheid would enfource on South Africa. The political

consequence of legalising segregation led to national and international consequences. There was a

lot of discontent and protests in South Africa, which led to international concerns. As South Africa

was part of the Commonwealth, the UK felt compelled to bring apartheid to international light. This

was done by the British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan’s speech, ‘the winds of change’ in 1960.

Macmillan was born in 1894 and started his career in politics in 1924 when he was elected to the

House of Commons.3 In his speech to Parliament, Macmillan stated that the apartheid policies

placed in South Africa made it impossible to support and encourage the country’s growth.4 A year

after this speech was made, South Africa still having its controversial policies and being scowled

about it from other countries, decided to leave the Commonwealth and become a Republic.

The social implications of Apartheid meant that there was a lot of social discontent in society. There

were boycotts and protests. One protest which caught the international community’s attention was

1 “South Africa”, Wikipedia, 28 June 2011, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa

2 Ibid

3 “Harold Macmillan”, Wikipedia, 27 June 2011,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Macmillan#Political_career_.281924.E2.80.931957.29 4“Harold Macmillan, ‘Winds of Change Speech’, Famous Speeches and Speech Topics, 22 June 2011,

http://www.famous-speeches-and-speech-topics.info/famous-speeches/harold-macmillan-speech-wind-of-change.htm

Comment [B1]: Is this relevant to the argument? If so, be clear and explain why.

Comment [B2]: This short sentence does not flow in the paragraph and needs to be linked to what has been mentioned in either the sentence before or after.

Comment [B3]: Wikipedia is not a good source to use for academic writing because it can be edited at any point and is not scholarly at all.

Comment [B4]: This is an assumption and is unclear. Who is this statement clear to? What source stated this and how viable is this opinion? These are the kinds of questions that need to be asked.

Comment [B5]: Be careful of grammatical errors. Always use the Spell check (found in the Review tab if you are using Microsoft Word).

Comment [B6]: Keep consistency- is Apartheid written with a capital A or small a? Whatever you choose, make sure to keep it throughout your work and that it’s the correct format.

Comment [B7]: This information is irrelevant and is not assisting the argument or discussion in this paper. When this happens, one should remove the sentence.

Comment [B8]: This is a good reference to use as it’s a primary source which adds stronger evidence to History assignments.

Comment [B9]: This sentence is very short and doesn’t seem to be contributing to the argument.

Comment [B10]: Be careful of colloquial language. Remember academic writing should be formal, so avoid using slang and clichés.

the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre. This massacre occurred when Africans stated protesting about

carrying passes, which was law at the time5. Police were outnumbered by the amount of protesters

and started shooting at the crowd, which resulted in 69 deaths.6 The recognition of these protests

resulted in SA being banned from taking part in international sports events such as the Olympics.

In conclusion, the political and social implications Apartheid had on South Africa are vast. Not only is

this legislation that legalised racial segregation in society, but the domestic discontent spread to the

international community which in turn made South African history a very morbid one.

5 “Sharpeville: A Massacre and its Consequences”, Foreign Affairs, 20 June 2011,

http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/136576/tom-lodge/sharpeville-a-massacre-and-its-consequences 6 Ibid.

Comment [B11]: This is unclear. Was SA banned from sports events because of specific protests or their Apartheid laws?

Comment [B12]: This conclusion is very short and could summarise the topic more. It seems very vague and doesn’t mention what was discussed in detail such as the Sharpeville Massacre, etc.