Banning of
the ANC and PAC

On 8 April 1960 the Unlawful Organisations Act declared that all groups that were campaigning for the end of apartheid were declared illegal and banned, which forced the PAC and the ANC to go underground. The Communist Party, with its appeal to the working class and the poor, had already been banned in 1950.

“Overnight, membership of the ANC and the PAC had become a felony, punishable by jail term and a fine. The penalty was imprisonment for up to 10 years. From now on, non-violent protests under the auspices of the liberation movement became illegal.” (Michael Kitso Dingake, My Fight Against Apartheid, 1987)

Banning of the ANC and PAC

On 8 April 1960 the Unlawful Organisations Act declared that all groups that were campaigning for the end of apartheid were declared illegal and banned, which forced the PAC and the ANC to go underground. The Communist Party, with its appeal to the working class and the poor, had already been banned in 1950. “Overnight, membership of the ANC and the PAC had become a felony, punishable by jail term and a fine. The penalty was imprisonment for up to 10 years. From now on, non-violent protests under the auspices of the liberation movement became illegal.” (Michael Kitso Dingake, My Fight Against Apartheid, 1987)