Question

Write a short note on ‘The African National Congress’

Answer 1

Hint:
African National Congress (ANC) has been the ruling party since the election of Nelson Mandela in the 1994 election. It has won every election since then.

Complete step by step solution:
The African National Congress is the Republic of South Africa’s governing political party. It has been ruling in the post-apartheid South Africa. It was founded in 1912 by John Langalibalele Dube in Bloemfontein. It was first founded as the South African Native National Congress (SANNC) and its primary mission was to bring all the Africans together as one to defend their rights and freedoms. It also included giving full voting rights to black South Africans and mixed race South Africans. One of the major missions was to end the system of apartheid which was introduced by the Nationalist Party Government.

In order to end apartheid, the ANC originally attempted to use non-violent protests. The Sharpeville massacre in 1960 witnessed the killing of more than 60 black Africans by police and hundreds of people were wounded in a peaceful protest. This deteriorated their relations with the South African government.

In 1960, ANC was banned by the administration of Charles Robberts Swart in South Africa. The ANC formed Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the nation) after their ban. This is primarily done to fight against apartheid by utilising guerrilla warfare and sabotage.
The country began to move towards a full democracy and in 1990, the State President lifted the ban on the ANC and released Nelson Mandela from prison. In 1992, an apartheid referendum was passed which removed apartheid and allowed the ANC to contest elections in 1994. This was the first time all South Africans were allowed to vote for their national government.

Note:
The African National Congress has performed better than 55% in all general elections since 1994. It includes the most recent 2019 elections.