Browse Cases

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Marikana miners strike for better wages, 2012

Country
South Africa
Time period
8th August, 2012 to 18th September, 2012
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Total points
4.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Timothy Hirschel-Burns 4/4/2015

Marikana platinum mine, near Rustenburg, South Africa, employed thousands of workers, composed mostly of migrants working for low wages.  Lonmin, a British mining company, owned Marikana.  The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) represented most of the workers at Marikana.  NUM was one of the two largest unions in the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), an extremely powerful organization and a major player in South Africa’s ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC).

Black South Africans resist pass laws and mount general strike (Sharpeville Massacre), 1960

Country
South Africa
Time period
21 March, 1960 to September, 1960
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Hayley Summers, 29/04/2013

In 1960 South Africa was under the rule of the National Party, which was imposing harsh, demeaning laws on black South Africans. The party was made up entirely of white people, mostly the descendants of Dutch immigrants. The party was devoted to apartheid and white supremacy, maintained through a collection of policies, including the pass laws. 

South African miners strike for higher wages, 1946

Country
South Africa
Time period
12 August, 1946 to 16 August, 1946
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Yein Pyo, 22/11/2012

In 1941 the pay disparity between black South African mine workers and white South African workers was R70 to R848, respectively. The African Mine Workers’ Union (AMWU) formed in response to address this issue. By 1946 the 12:1 ratio of pay had not changed, as black workers were paid R87 while white workers were paid R1,106.

Indians in South Africa wage Satyagraha for their rights, 1906-1914

Country
South Africa
Time period
August, 1906 to January, 1914
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Zein Nakhoda 14/5/2011

Before the start of the 20th century, there were about 62,000 Indians living in South Africa, including the British colonies of Natal and the Cape, and the Boer republics of Transvaal and the Orange Free State (OFS). Most Indians were indentured laborers or newly freed laborers.

South Africans disobey apartheid laws (Defiance of Unjust Laws Campaign), 1952-1953

Country
South Africa
Time period
June 26, 1952 to February, 1953
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Anthony Phalen, 06/11/2009

The Defiance of Unjust Laws Campaign was developed by the African National Congress (ANC) to combat apartheid. More specifically, the campaign used large-scale national noncooperation to target laws enacted by the South African government that the ANC deemed unjust. The campaign began on June 26, 1952, as groups throughout South Africa executed various acts of defiance in main cities. The ANC and the South African Indian Congress (SAIC) united Africans and Indians alike to take on apartheid.