Delmas Treason Trial
Encyclopedia
The Delmas Treason Trial (1985–1988) in South Africa
was the prosecution of 22 anti-apartheid activists under security laws, with the intention of suppressing the United Democratic Front
(UDF). The defendants included three senior UDF leaders, Frank Chikane
, Mosiuoa Lekota
and Popo Molefe
, known as the "Big Three". Eleven of the accused were found guilty in the same courtroom as Mandela was found guilty. Just before the verdict white supremacist spree killer
Barend Strydom
started to shoot people in the square outside the court. Their sentences were overturned in 1989 after an appeal to the Supreme Court.
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
was the prosecution of 22 anti-apartheid activists under security laws, with the intention of suppressing the United Democratic Front
United Democratic Front (South Africa)
The United Democratic Front was one of the most important anti-apartheid organisations of the 1980s. The non-racial coalition of about 400 civic, church, students', workers' and other organisations was formed in 1983, initially to fight the just-introduced idea of the Tricameral Parliament The...
(UDF). The defendants included three senior UDF leaders, Frank Chikane
Frank Chikane
Frank Chikane is a South African civil servant, writer and cleric. He is a member of the African National Congress.-Biography:...
, Mosiuoa Lekota
Mosiuoa Lekota
Mosiuoa Gerard Patrick Lekota is a South African politician who currently serves as the President and Leader of the Congress of the People since 16 December 2008. Previously, under President Thabo Mbeki, he served in the Cabinet of South Africa as Minister of Defence from 17 June 1999 to 25...
and Popo Molefe
Popo Molefe
Popo Simon Molefe is a South African politician, and the former Premier of the North West Province....
, known as the "Big Three". Eleven of the accused were found guilty in the same courtroom as Mandela was found guilty. Just before the verdict white supremacist spree killer
Spree killer
A spree killer is someone who embarks on a murderous assault on two or more victims in a short time in multiple locations. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics defines a spree killing as "killings at two or more locations with almost no time break between murders."-Definition:According to the...
Barend Strydom
Barend Strydom
Barend Hendrik Strydom, also known as the Wit Wolf , is a convicted spree killer who was sentenced to death for shooting dead seven black people in Strijdom Square in Pretoria, South Africa on November 15, 1988...
started to shoot people in the square outside the court. Their sentences were overturned in 1989 after an appeal to the Supreme Court.