APARTHEID QUESTIONS (1948 – 1960)
1. What were the main aims of Apartheid?
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to separate the races
to make segregation more official i.e. law
to make the ‘whites’ superior
2. Study Source 2 (Main Apartheid Laws)
List those Apartheid laws which were aimed mainly at:
a) Dividing up the different races:
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Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act
Population Registration Act
Group Areas Act
Separate Amenities Act
b) Controlling the movement of blacks:
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Native Laws Amendment Act
Abolition of Passes Act
Group Areas Act
3. Newspaper cartoons are intended to be amusing comments on events or issues in the news.
a) What issue is the cartoonist commenting on in Source 3 (Cape Times 1959)?
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How difficult it was to see which racial group people belonged to
How silly this law was
Mocking the law
b) Explain how likely you think non-white people were to be amused by the cartoon.
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‘coloured’ people could have a lighter skin than ‘white’ people and classifications were often wrong
4. Study Source 2 (Freedom Charter of 1955).
If the South African Apartheid government had agreed to points 4,6 and 8 of the Charter, which of the
Apartheid laws would it have had to abolish?
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Group Areas Act
Abolition of Passes Act
Native Laws Amendment Act
The Bantu Education Act
Any other Apartheid Law
5. You are a senior white police officer at Kliptown and a supporter of the National Party. Write a report to the
government about the Kliptown meeting which describes what happened and assess how dangerous for the
National government it could be.
Apartheid Questions (19481960)
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The ANC leaders got together and drew up a 10 point plan for the wishes of the Black people
They wanted a non-racial country
If this document (Freedom Charter) reached all the blacks they could try to revolt against Apartheid
They must be charged with treason
6. Source 1 shows women demonstrating against the Pass laws.
Explain what the Pass laws were.
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It controlled the movements of 'blacks' in and out of the 'white' cities
If you were a 'black' person and you wanted to work in a 'white' area then you had to get permission
from the Apartheid government via a Pass Book that was stamped weekly at the police station
Long queues at the police station
Thrown in jail if Pass book was not up to date
7. Why do you think these women felt that the Pass laws were against freedom and justice?
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The Pass laws restricted their freedom of movement to work wherever they wanted to
They had to wait in long queues at the police stations every week to get their Pass books stamped
They were arrested and detained indefinitely if it was not up to date
Separated black men and women
8. This was a peaceful demonstration, yet Albertina Sisulu was imprisoned for helping to lead it. Why do you
think the police treated the demonstrators so harshly?
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They were demonstrating against the ruling Apartheid government
They were disrespecting the offices of the Prime Minister
They were singing 'revolution' songs which made the police nervous
Were made an example of
Revolution songs were about stopping and getting rid of the leaders
9. Lilian Ngoyi and Helen Joseph were banned as a result of their political activities. This meant that they were
not allowed to take part in political activities and were forbidden to see each other. Which aspects of their
protest do you think made the government treat them so harshly?
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They were singing 'revolution' songs
Their songs were threatening the Apartheid government
They sang, '.....you shall be destroyed'.
They were 'firing up' thousands of women – so many that they could become difficult to deal with
They were worried it may turn violent
Apartheid Questions (19481960)