About this site

This resource is hosted by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, but was compiled and authored by Padraig O’Malley. It is the product of almost two decades of research and includes analyses, chronologies, historical documents, and interviews from the apartheid and post-apartheid eras.

The background

As was described in last year's Survey,15 between about 1953 and 1958 bans were imposed under the Suppression of Communism and Riotous Assemblies Acts on a number of the leaders of the African National Congress. Although others were nominated to act for these leaders, the newcomers to high office did not enjoy the same national prestige, and internal difficulties arose. Several of these bans expired during 1958. Between 12 April and 29 August of that year, however, there was a ban on gatherings of more than ten Africans in all the major urban areas unless special permission was obtained, which made it impossible for Congress to hold representative meetings at which internal difficulties could be discussed.

In this situation, a powerful bid for leadership was made by the Africanist group, whose slogan is "Africa for the Africans", and who feel that "Africans can best negotiate with other groups from a position of strength. For this reason they have been opposed to collaboration with other organizations within (lie "Congress Movement"."16 Other members of the A.N.C. who were not necessarily Africanists had been uneasy about Congress's participation in the "Freedom Charter"/'"' and accused ihcir leaders of letting the (White) Congress of Democrats and the Indians do their thinking for them. Finally, in November .1958, the Africanists and A.N.C. dissentients, led by Mr. Josias Madzunya, walked out of an annual meeting of the Transvaal Congress and announced that they would launch out on their own.

The A.N.C. planned a "stay-at-home" demonstration to commence on 14 April 1958, just prior to the general election. This proved to be a failure, and the leaders lost prestige as a result.

In November 1958 it appeared that the affairs of the A.N.C. were at a low ebb.

This resource is hosted by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, but was compiled and authored by Padraig O’Malley. Return to theThis resource is hosted by the site.