1992 in South Africa
Encyclopedia
February
- 3 February - President F.W. de Klerk and Nelson MandelaNelson MandelaNelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
, the African National CongressAfrican National CongressThe African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
leader are jointly awarded the Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace PrizeFélix Houphouët-Boigny Peace PrizeThe Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize was established in 1990 by UNESCO:The prize bears the name of Félix Houphouët-Boigny, late former president of Côte d'Ivoire. It is awarded annually. The prize is 122,000 euros, to be shared equally in the case of multiple recipients.-Recipients:-External...
at the UnescoUNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
headquarters in Paris - About the 25 February South Africa and BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
sign a diplomatic agreement - 28 February - The ownership of the port town of Walvis BayWalvis BayWalvis Bay , is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies...
is transferred from South Africa to NamibiaNamibiaNamibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
- South Africa and Russia establish full diplomatic ties
March
- The Skweyiya Commission finds the African National Congress guilty of having a systematic policy of abuse and to violate human rights in some camps of exile
- 12 March - Citrusdal in the Cape ProvinceCape ProvinceThe Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
becomes South Africa's first officially-recognised non-racial local authority. - 17 March - The government holds a referendumReferendumA referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
around changing the constitutionConstitutionA constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
, paving the way to end apartheid (main article: 1992 South African Referendum)
April
- 13 April - Nelson MandelaNelson MandelaNelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
announces his separation from his wife Winnie Madikizela-MandelaWinnie Madikizela-MandelaWinnie Madikizela-Mandela is a South African politician who has held several government positions and headed the African National Congress Women's League. She is currently a member of the ANC's National Executive Committee...
at a press conference in JohannesburgJohannesburgJohannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
June
- The legal system of apartheid is repealed
- 4 June - The co.za internet domain is created
- 17 June - Violence breaks between the African National CongressAfrican National CongressThe African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
and the Inkatha Freedom PartyInkatha Freedom PartyThe Inkatha Freedom Party is a political party in South Africa. Since its founding, it has been led by Mangosuthu Buthelezi. It is currently the fourth largest party in the National Assembly of South Africa.-History:...
in Boipatong leaving 46 dead
September
- 7 September - 29 people are killed in the Bisho massacreBisho massacreThe Bisho massacre occurred on 7 September 1992 in Bisho, in the nominally independent homeland of Ciskei in South Africa. Twenty-eight African National Congress supporters and one soldier were shot dead by the Ciskei Defence Force during a protest march when they attempted to enter Bisho to...
when the Ciskei Defence ForceCiskei Defence ForceThe Ciskei Defence Force was established during March 1981 from the 141 Battalion of the South African Defence Force . It functioned as part of the 21 Battalion based in Lenasia, Johannesburg....
open fire on about 100,000 protesters in Bisho, CiskeiCiskeiCiskei was a Bantustan in the south east of South Africa. It covered an area of 2,970 square miles , almost entirely surrounded by what was then the Cape Province, and possessed a small coastline along the shore of the Indian Ocean....
November
- 28 November - The Azanian People's Liberation ArmyAzanian People's Liberation ArmyThe Azanian People's Liberation Army was the military wing of the Pan Africanist Congress in South Africa. It was originally called Poqo.-History:...
, the military wing of the Pan Africanist Congress, attack civilians at the King William's TownKing William's TownKing William's Town is a town in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa along the banks of the Buffalo River. The town is about 40 minutes' motorway drive WNW of the Indian Ocean port of East London...
Golf Club killing four people
Unknown date
- Trevor ManuelTrevor ManuelTrevor Andrew Manuel is a South African politician, currently serving in the Cabinet of South Africa as Minister in the Presidency in charge of the National Planning Commission...
becomes head of the African National CongressAfrican National CongressThe African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
' Department of Economic Planning
Athletics
- 28 March – Abel Mokibe wins his first national title in the men's marathon, clocking 2:11:07 in Cape TownCape TownCape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
.
Deaths
- Julayi Hlekiso, chairperson of the Transport and General Workers Union, is shot dead in TranskeiTranskeiThe Transkei , officially the Republic of Transkei , was a Bantustan—an area set aside for members of a specific ethnicity—and nominal parliamentary democracy in the southeastern region of South Africa...
- 9 July - Chief Julius Matatu, former Transkei minister and prominent traditional leader, is shot and killed at his home in Mqanduli, Transkei
- 18 October - Abraham Manie AdelsteinAbraham Manie AdelsteinAbraham Manie "Abe" Adelstein was a South African born doctor who became the United Kingdom's Chief Medical Statistician.-Career:...
, United Kingdom's Chief Medical StatisticianStatisticianA statistician is someone who works with theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private and public sectors. The core of that work is to measure, interpret, and describe the world and human activity patterns within it...
, dies at the age of 76 - 25 December - Helen JosephHelen JosephHelen Joseph , a South African anti-apartheid activist, was born in Easebourne near Midhurst West Sussex, England and graduated from King's College London, in 1927. After working as a teacher in India for three years, Helen came to South Africa in 1931, where she met and married Billie Joseph...
, activist, dies at the age of 87