The UN and apartheid: a chronology.

Apartheid--an Afrikaans word meaning separateness--was the State system of institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination adopted by the South African Government in 1948 as an official policy until early 1990, when the Government committed itself to ending apartheid and establishing a non-racial and democratic system of government.

Under apartheid, South Africa's population was divided into separate groups according to colour-Black (African), White (European), Coloured and Indian. Black South Africans--some 73 per cent of the country's population--were systematically denied fundamental rights and liberties, not allowed to participate in the political life of the country, and subject to repressive laws and regulations.

This strictly observed segregation was regulated and enforced through a number of laws, chief among them being the Population Registration Act of 1950, under which racial categories were defined, a population register was compiled, and "identity cards" were issued. South Africa was divided into a White area and African reserves. Within the White urban areas, the Group Areas Act of 1950 was used to divide the non-White population into different residential areas--Coloured, Indian, Black--while the African population was further divided on an "ethnic" basis within the townships set aside for them.

There were ten reserves called "bantustans" (or the so-called "homelands") assigned to Africans, one for each of the "national units" of the African population as defined under the apartheid system. These re scattered into 81 separate and on-contiguous pieces of land. Although Africans outnumbered whites by more than 4 to 1, these reserves constituted only 13 per cent of the land in South Africa and conined some of the most arid and infertile areas.

UN involvement: Since 1946

Both the UN General Assembly and the Security Council have repeatedly declared apartheid incompatible with the UN Charter. The Assembly condemned apartheid as a crime against humanity. The Council termed it a crime against the conscience and dignity of mankind, and a threat to international peace and security. Over the years, UN organs agreed on a wide range of actions that could help end apartheid.

The question of South Africa's racial policies was first brought before the Assembly in 1946, when India complained that the Government had enacted legislation discriminating against South Africans of Indian origin. The wider question of racial conflict arising from South Africa's apartheid policies was placed on the Assembly's agenda in 1952. From 1962 to 1992, the Assembly considered both questions under the agenda item entitled "Policies of apartheid of the Government of the Republic of South Africa".

During the 1950s, the Assembly made repeated appeals to South Africa to abandon its apartheid policies in light of the principles of both the UN Charter and the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. South Africa, however, viewing the Assembly's decisions as illegal and unacceptable and in violation of the principle of non-interference in its internal affairs, consistently rejected the Assembly appeals and resolutions.

In 1961, in resolution 1598 (XV), the Assembly for the first time defined apartheid as a danger to international peace and security. Beginning in 1961, it asked States to consider taking a broad range of separate and collective actions to influence South Africa to abandon its racial policies. it called on States to: end diplomatic relations with the South African Government; close ports to all South African flag vessels: prohibit ships from entering its ports: boycott all its goods; ban exports to South Africa; refuse landing and passage facilities to all aircraft belonging to the Government and companies registered under South African laws; and called for a voluntary embargo on the supply of petroleum, petroleum products and strategic raw materials to the country. From 1962 through 1988, the Assembly repeatedly urged the Security Council to impose mandatory sanctions against South Africa.

Special Committee: The UN focal point

In 1962, following the declaration of a state of emergency in South Africa and the suppression of protests, the General Assembly, in adopting resolution 1761 (XVII) on 6 November, established the Special Committee against Apartheid, to keep the Government's racial policies under constant review and report to the Assembly and the Security Council as appropriate.

The Special Committee became the focal point in the efforts of the international community to promote and monitor a comprehensive programme of action against apartheid and encourage support and assistance to South Africans and their liberation movements.

From 1965 through 1973, the credentials of the South African delegation were given specific consideration by the Assembly. However, it was not until 1974 that the Assembly, in resolution 3206 (XXIX), approving the report of its Credentials Committee, decided it would accept the credentials of representatives of Member States "with the exception of the credentials of the representatives of South Africa".

At the same meeting, on 30 September 1974, it called on the Security Council to review the relationship between the...