Rivonia Trial was a court case in the 1960’s involving some of the leading opponents of apartheid in South Africa. Apartheid was the system of racial segregation imposed by the South African government from 1948 to the early 1990’s. The Rivonia Trial defendants included the antiapartheid leaders Nelson Mandela, Govan Mbeki, and Walter Sisulu. The defendants—most of whom were found guilty—became symbols of the struggle for freedom against the oppression of apartheid.
In 1960, South Africa’s government outlawed the African National Congress (ANC), the nation’s largest antiapartheid group. However, the ANC continued to operate in secret. Mandela, Sisulu, and others formed Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation) as a militant wing of the ANC. The group organized acts of sabotage against government targets, though it tried to avoid injuring people.
In August 1962, the police arrested Mandela. In July 1963, the police raided a farmhouse in Rivonia, a suburb of Johannesburg, and seized other leaders. The farmhouse was Umkhonto’s secret headquarters. The raid uncovered documents outlining the group’s plans for armed struggle against the government.
In the Rivonia Trial, the government charged 10 defendants with sabotage and conspiracy. The defendants faced a possible death penalty. In a famous speech during the trial, Mandela said he was willing to die to achieve democracy and a free society in South Africa. In June 1964, the court found eight defendants, including Mandela, guilty. It sentenced them to life in prison. The government dropped the charges against one of the defendants. Another defendant was found not guilty.
As South Africa’s policies changed in the 1980’s, the government began to release the prisoners. Mandela was the last to be freed. He left prison on Feb. 11, 1990. In 1994, Mandela was elected the first Black president of South Africa.
