To what extent did growing international opposition contribute to the collapse of the apartheid system?

Candidates will focus their responses on the period from the first signs of global opposition to apartheid in the 1950s through to the final demise of the system in 1994. However, the main emphasis in responses will probably be on the later part of this period. One possible approach would be to critically examine a range of factors, including factors other than international opposition, before drawing a conclusion about the level of significance that could be attributed to them.

Indicative content

International opposition

• Candidates should refer to South Africa’s growing international diplomatic isolation during the course of the apartheid period. This began to accelerate in the 1960s following the independence of many African states as the UN repeatedly condemned the apartheid system.
• Economic factors could be stressed, including the trade boycotts and sanctions imposed by many countries and withdrawal of investment. These had a negative impact on white business interests. Eventually this led to the collapse of the South African economy in the 1970s and 1980s, which in turn put pressure on the government to reform apartheid.
• The various campaigns and marches organized by anti-apartheid activists in various countries around the world, often against South African participation in international sporting competitions may be referenced. This kept the apartheid system firmly in the international spotlight. There is evidence that by the 1980s many in the white community were frustrated that their country was
  being treated as an international pariah.
• The important role of some (mainly communist) countries in offering a haven for the African National Congress (ANC) in exile may be addressed. This frustrated the repeated attempts of the South African government to destroy the liberation movement.
• The imminent end of the Cold War by the late 1980s meant that South Africa could no longer rely upon the continued support of the US, and this was a factor in the final decision to dismantle the apartheid system.

Other factors

• For much of the period, countries like the US and Britain continued to provide diplomatic support to South Africa and ignore the economic embargo, a factor that lessened the impact of international opposition.
• Other internal political factors were perhaps more significant. These included the Soweto Uprising of 1976, the explosion of violence in the townships in the 1980s, and the emergence of the opposition United Democratic Front (UDF). The instability generated a sense of crisis and the impression that the country was heading for catastrophe.
• It has been argued that in the late 1980s de Klerk and others in the National Party (NP) realized that the best means of securing Afrikaner interests in the long term was to begin to dismantle the apartheid system.
• Another reason was the unexpectedly rapid pace of the political changes that followed the release of Mandela from prison in 1990. This was largely due to Mandela’s conciliatory approach to the white community and the determination of both he and de Klerk to convene the Convention for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA) to bring about a smooth transition to nonracial democracy.

The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. However, the list is not exhaustive and no set answer is required.

Examiners and moderators are reminded of the need to apply the markbands that provide the “best fit” to the responses given by candidates and to award credit wherever it is possible to do so.

[20 marks]