The Importance of the Opposition of Other Countries in Ending Apartheid in South Africa

I do agree that international opposition to apartheid was one of the

factors in bringing it to an end. However I think there are other

causes, both long and short term, that led to the end of apartheid in

South Africa.

People all over the world were shocked to see the violence in events

like the Soweto riots and the Sharpeville and Langa shootings. They

also saw the events occurring between the South African government and

extremist groups like the ANC, which appeared during Verwoerd's

apartheid. These events were short-term causes that brought about the

end of apartheid, but they had a large effect on international

opinion, which was a long-term cause. However to the rest of the

world, what actually happened in South Africa might have appeared

different to the reality. This is because often, different

interpretations were given by historians, and the people involved.

This would have been fairly confusing for people outside South Africa,

and they may not have ever really understood completely what was

happening. Therefore many people would not think that apartheid was as

bad for the blacks as it was in reality, because of the different

interpretations given to the rest of the world. This may have led to

little international opposition from some countries, which is why I do

not think it was one of the major causes in the ending of apartheid.

Another long-term cause was black resistance. In the 1970's the black

South Africans fought back against the government in a far more

powerful, bold way than they ever had done before. Extremist groups

began to form in all the townships, and riots broke out. There was

also the introduction of black consciousness, which was about blacks

standing up for themselves without the help of whites. The riots that

started as a result of the blacks fighting back at the government did

cause international opinion to change. This could have been an

intentional or un-intentional consequence, as the blacks may have

wanted to voice their opinions to the world, but it is unlikely that