De Klerk Lifts Ban: Mandela Freed, Apartheid Crumbles
F.W. de Klerk stood before the South African Parliament on February 2, 1990, and delivered a speech that dismantled the legal architecture of apartheid in thirty minutes. He unbanned the African National Congress, the Pan Africanist Congress, and the South African Communist Party. He announced the imminent release of Nelson Mandela, who had been imprisoned for twenty-seven years. He lifted restrictions on the press and suspended executions. The speech stunned the chamber. De Klerk's own National Party had enforced apartheid since 1948; now its leader was tearing it down. His motivations were pragmatic rather than moral: international sanctions had crippled the economy, the Cold War's end removed the communist threat that had justified white minority rule, and the townships were becoming ungovernable. Mandela walked out of Victor Verster Prison nine days later. South Africa held its first multiracial elections in 1994.
February 2, 1990
36 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on February 2
Alaric II published a law code in 506 that wasn't for his own people. The Visigoths had their own customs. But they ruled over millions of Romans in southern Ga…
Rodrigo of Castile marched to the Morcuera gorge near Miranda de Ebro with combined Christian forces. He was counting on the terrain — narrow passes, defensible…
Louis III rode into Saxony with the Frankish army in 880. He was 18. The Norse Great Heathen Army had been raiding the region for months, and Louis wanted them …
Otto I saved the Pope from a Roman mob, then showed up in Rome expecting payment. Pope John XII crowned him Holy Roman Emperor on February 2, 962. The title had…
Conrad II secured the crown of Burgundy after the death of his childless uncle, King Rudolf III. By absorbing this kingdom into the Holy Roman Empire, he gained…
Stephen became the first English king captured in battle since Harold at Hastings. He'd seized the throne from his cousin Matilda in 1135, breaking his oath to …
Talk to History
Have a conversation with historical figures who witnessed this era. Ask questions, explore perspectives, and bring history to life.