The Role Of The International Community During The Struggle Against Apartheid?

Although South Africa had preexisting segregation laws, the National Party won the 1948 election and imposed the strict apartheid regime that we are familiar with today. In 1948, other countries around the world had segregation laws, therefore, most of the international community did not frown upon the implementation of apartheid. However, in the last half of the twentieth century, the sentiments of other countries started to change and the pressure from these countries was one of the reasons apartheid was finally dismantled in 1994. The Role of the International Community During the Struggle Against Apartheid will be examined specifically through the lens of the United Nations and South Africa’s relationship with the entity.
South Africa’s
However, by a vote of 45 to 6 with 8 abstentions, the General Assembly rejected South Africa’s belief and apartheid was included in the agenda. Eighteen countries then presented a draft resolution to create a commission to examine the racial situation in South Africa. Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and Norway created a different draft that did not directly reference apartheid in South Africa (Reddy 1992). Instead it called for all United Nations members to have policies that, in a multi-racial society, respect for human rights and the peaceful development of a unified community were best assured when patterns of legislation and practice were directed towards ensuring equality before the law of all persons, and when economic, social, cultural and political participation of all racial groups was on a basis of equality (Reddy 1992, 45).
When voted upon, the first resolution resulted in 35-1 votes of support with 23 abstentions and all the countries of the West abstained. The draft by Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and Norway with a result of 24-1 votes and 34 abstentions, was adopted. These efforts eventually led to the creation of the UN Commission on the Racial Situation in the Union of South Africa (UNCORS) (Reddy
South Africa is the only country in the world where the Natives are rigorously excluded from certain categories of employment by the legislation of a minority intent on reserving them for itself” (Reddy 1992, 49). The commission suggested that the South African government create new policies with input from other ethnic groups and align these policies with the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Reddy 1992). Although well intentioned, the powers of the West found ways to shut down the commission and their efforts in order preserve their own interests.
Despite the West’s efforts in trying to take and keep South Africa off of the international agenda, the Sharpeville Massacre, which occurred on March 21, 1960, thrust the country and apartheid right back into the spotlight. Sixty-nine people, who were protesting South Africa’s Pass Law, were killed that day after the police opened fire into a crowd of thousands of people (Hostetter 2006). The massacre sparked protests around the world and caused many countries to cut economic and trade ties with South Africa. In June of 1960, the Second Conference of Independent African States meeting urged African