Evaluate the reasons why the African National Congress (ANC) adopted armed struggle.

The question requires that candidates make an appraisal of the reasons why the African National Congress (ANC) adopted armed struggle. Candidates may refer to evidence such as the apartheid laws passed since 1948 and argue that armed struggle was the ANC’s ultimate response to a racist system. They may note the peaceful campaigns and demonstrations organized by the ANC and argue that these had failed to persuade an intransigent government to negotiate. Candidates may stress the importance of the Sharpeville Massacre and argue that the government’s response to this—the banning of the ANC—dramatically narrowed the scope for more peaceful protest. They may also mention the influence of the South African Communist Party and rivalry with the Pan Africanist Congress, a movement that had already created its own armed wing.