There was a prejudice towards all non-whites but in particular those who were black. Blacks were seen to be inferior this could be evident in the way pass laws affected them. Blacks had to use separate amenities from the whites and other examples of this was separate schools for natives to prepare them for an inferior position in society.
Internal opposition had an affect also on the currant situation by the different groups such as Nelson Mandela’s ANC and others. Mandela wanted blacks to be treated just as fairly as whites. He wanted to be as equal as the whites, to have the same laws and have the same privileges as whites. Mandela formed the ANC (African National Congress) to fight Dr Veorwoerd and his government over apartheid laws. The laws determined where members of each group could live, what jobs they could hold, and what type of education they could receive. Nelson Mandela was sick of these apartheid laws so he was willing to sacrifice his life, stand up for what he believed so that blacks could be treated just as fairly as whites. Mandela was willing to fight apartheid because he knew that apartheid laws were wrong and he wanted to be accepted as a black and treated the same as a white. Mandela was not violent but he still would not tell the ANC to stop being violent. Mandela knew that if he carried on being peaceful he would get nowhere and he would not end apartheid this way. He had to condemn the ANC’s violence, which was the only way to get the government to listen to them. The ANC’s peaceful protests included such there were strikes and the boycotting of buses. Internal opposition was also the case of what happened in Sharpeville on 21st March 1960 when there was a crowd of 5000 outside the police station campaign which after a tussle ended up with the police killing 69 people who many were shot in the back.
The external opposition came from trade sanctions as in 1986 commonwealth politicians visited South Africa to find out whether sanctions would help end Apartheid. Sanction was not the way forward, sanctions did not bring a sudden end to apartheid. Sanctions did not cover everything and companies found a way round these laws and continued trading although the economy was getting no revenue.
The most effective was external opposition as this was more pressure on South Africa from different parts of the world that had an influence on South Africa’s trade and general commerce. External sanctions were imposed on South Africa by the United States and EEC, this then caused anxious white business men to meet with ANC leaders and discuss the state of their country and how to improve and therefore remedy current situations. Not all countries were involved with these sanctions as in the case of Britain but the British Prime Minister of the time Margaret Thatcher did travel to South Africa and but was involved in talks.
Problems that still remain in South Africa today are discontentment among whites brought on by the rising crime, violence and crime was so common that shockingly after April 1994 an average of one murder, two rapes and more than twelve burglaries took place every half hour. The wealthy who were more or less all whites were more able to avoid the crime as they had security but for the average folk it was harder, this meant that if blacks and whites were to be treated as equals the white would be more susceptible to this crime. AIDS is also what whites are discontent with as millions of people in South Africa have either AIDS or are in fact HIV positive, this disease is spread viciously and whites are not happy with how bad it has become. White South Africans had fears about giving up the white majority rule, as would anyone who was about to give up something. Their main fears were that they’d lose their land, lose their status, becomes a communist country, lose power, and be prosecuted for crimes committed under apartheid.
Blacks are discontent as unemployment is what they face because of the years they have been without a proper education that is required for them if they ever want to get the good jobs and be skilled workers. This also brings up the concern of education for the blacks as in the past had less than a second rate education when compared to the white South Africans it is important for the blacks that the education they receive is as good as what the whites are currently receiving. Blacks are still bothered about housing situations nowadays as some blacks live in the areas still that they did when apartheid was in rule; this means townships and blacks see this as unfair. The injustices have tried to be tackled but progress is poor in the areas of extras building, building programs and free health care.
The problems and conflicts that remain today are products of past events and things that have gone on, I a mainly indicating the existence of apartheid. If there had been no apartheid and separation then there would have been less problems filling South Africa today. South Africa is dealing with problems such as racism, poverty, education, unemployment, crime, health, and government. Some of which are unavoidable problems that many countries are dealing with some issues with but none such as South Africa as they are the country that had such a destructive tool as apartheid to rip through the country and be the cause of so many problems.