Question

South Africa gained its independence from Britain in 1910. Why did this not lead to freedom and equality in South Africa?

(4 points)

Answer 1

1) Political power stayed with the white minority — the Union government formed in 1910 was run by white parties and non‑whites were largely excluded from the franchise and from effective representation.
2) Racially discriminatory laws continued and were expanded — the state enshrined segregation in law rather than promoting equal rights.
3) Land dispossession: the 1913 Natives Land Act and related measures confined most Black people to reserves and barred them from owning land in the best agricultural areas, entrenching economic inequality.
4) Economic and social oppression: pass laws, restrictive labour controls, inferior education and limited mobility kept non‑whites economically dependent and socially marginalized, laying the foundations for later formal apartheid.