1979 in South Africa
Encyclopedia
January
- 8 January - South Africa and LesothoLesothoLesotho , officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a landlocked country and enclave, surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. It is just over in size with a population of approximately 2,067,000. Its capital and largest city is Maseru. Lesotho is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The name...
sign a monetary agreement - 14 January - Police clash with Umkhonto we SizweUmkhonto we SizweUmkhonto we Sizwe , translated "Spear of the Nation," was the armed wing of the African National Congress which fought against the South African apartheid government. MK launched its first guerrilla attacks against government installations on 16 December 1961...
guerrillasGuerrilla warfareGuerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
on a farm near Zeerust, one is arrested while 6 escape over the BotswanaBotswanaBotswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
border - 23 January - A bomb explodes near the New Canada railway station in SowetoSowetoSoweto is a lower-class-populated urban area of the city of Johannesburg in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for South Western Townships...
- 24 January - Large quantity of explosives are found and defused on the railway between Fort BeaufortFort BeaufortFort Beaufort is a town in the Amatole District of South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, and has a population of 78,300. The town was established in 1837 and became a municipality in 1883. The town lies at the confluence of the Kat and Brak rivers between the Keiskamma and Great Fish rivers...
and King William's TownKing William's TownKing William's Town is a town in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa along the banks of the Buffalo River. The town is about 40 minutes' motorway drive WNW of the Indian Ocean port of East London...
May
- 5 May - Guerrillas open fire in the Moroka Police Station's charge office killing one policeman and wounding three others. 3 civilians were also injured
- 29 May - Bishop Abel MuzorewaAbel MuzorewaBishop Abel Tendekayi Muzorewa served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia from the Internal Settlement to the Lancaster House Agreement in 1979...
becomes the transitional Prime Minister of Zimbabwe RhodesiaPrime Minister of RhodesiaThe Prime Minister of Rhodesia was the head of government in the colony of Rhodesia. Rhodesia's political system was modelled on the Westminster system and the Prime Minister's role was similar to that of the same position in other countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New...
June
- Explosives are discovered and defused on railway line in the Eastern TransvaalTransvaal ProvinceTransvaal Province was a province of the Union of South Africa from 1910 to 1961, and of its successor, the Republic of South Africa, from 1961 until the end of apartheid in 1994 when a new constitution subdivided it.-History:...
- 4 June - Marais ViljoenMarais ViljoenMarais Viljoen was the last ceremonial State President of South Africa from 4 June 1979 until 3 September 1984. Viljoen became the last of the ceremonial presidents of South Africa when he was succeeded in 1984 by an executive president, P. W. Botha.- Early life :Viljoen was the youngest of six...
becomes State President of South AfricaState President of South AfricaState President, or Staatspresident in Afrikaans, was the title of South Africa's head of state from 1961 to 1994. The office was established when the country became a republic in 1961, and Queen Elizabeth II ceased to be head of state...
for the second time
September
- 22 September - A Vela satelliteVela (satellite)Vela was the name of a group of satellites developed as the Vela Hotel element of Project Vela by the United States to monitor compliance with the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty by the Soviet Union, and other nuclear-capable states. It means vigil or "watch" in Spanish.Vela started out as a small...
detects a double flash signal in the southern Atlantic Ocean. This is widely believed to be a South African and IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i nuclear test although denied by South Africa
November
- Guerrillas open fire and hurl grenades into the charge office of Orlando Police Station, SowetoSowetoSoweto is a lower-class-populated urban area of the city of Johannesburg in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for South Western Townships...
. Two policemen are killed and two wounded - Grenades thrown into the home of Special Branch policeman, Lt Magezi Ngobeni, 5 children wounded
December
- Bomb explodes and damages the railway near Alice
- Bomb explodes at the SasolSasolSasol Ltd. is a South African company involved in mining, energy, chemicals and synfuels. In particular, they produce petrol and diesel profitably from coal and natural gas using Fischer-Tropsch process...
Oil Refineries and cause massive structural damage
Unknown date
- The National Council of Lawyers for Human Rights is established
- The African National CongressAfrican National CongressThe African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
's Special Operations is set up to undertake high-profile acts of sabotage on key economic installations. This structure reported directly to Oliver TamboOliver TamboOliver Reginald Tambo was a South African anti-apartheid politician and a central figure in the African National Congress .-Biography:Oliver Tambo was born in Bizana in eastern Pondoland in what is now Eastern Cape... - The African National Congress' Nova Catengue Training Camp is destroyed in an aerial bombardment by the South African Air ForceSouth African Air ForceThe South African Air Force is the air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. It is the world's second oldest independent air force, and its motto is Per Aspera Ad Astra...
- The South African Defence ForceSouth African Defence ForceThe South African Defence Force was the South African armed forces from 1957 until 1994. The former Union Defence Force was renamed to the South African Defence Force in the Defence Act of 1957...
s invade southern ZambiaZambiaZambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
in Operation SafraanOperation SafraanOperation Safraan was a series of South African Defence Force raids from the Caprivi Strip area during the South African Border War. South African forces entered south-western Zambia attacking PLAN bases. These bases were found to have been vacated but the facilities were destroyed disrupting...
Motorsport
- 3 March - The South African Grand Prix1979 South African Grand PrixThe 1979 South African Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on 3 March 1979 at Kyalami.- Classification :- Notes :* Lap Leaders: Jean-Pierre Jabouille 1 lap ; Gilles Villeneuve 39 laps ; Jody Scheckter 38 laps ....
, is held at KyalamiKyalamiKyalami is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng province, South Africa. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix and Formula One races and has hosted the South African Grand Prix many times. In recent years, the area surrounding the circuit has developed into a residential and... - Jody ScheckterJody ScheckterJody David Scheckter is a South African former auto racing driver, the Formula One World Drivers Champion.-Career:Scheckter was born in East London, South Africa and educated at Selborne College.-Formula One:...
becomes Formula OneFormula OneFormula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
World Champion.
Deaths
- February - Sgt Benjamin Letlako, a Police Special Branch member is shot dead in Katlehong
- 12 June - David SibekoDavid SibekoDavid Maphgumzana Sibeko , was known as the "Malcolm X of South Africa" and began his political career as a journalist for the black South African Magazine Drum. During his tenure with that magazine, he became a leading figure within the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania...
, director of Foreign Affairs of the Pan Africanist Congress and representative to the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, is shot dead in Dar-es-Salaam, TanzaniaTanzaniaThe United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state... - 30 April - A.A. Pienaar (Andries Albertus Pienaar, pen name Sangiro), born 23 August 1894, died on his farm, Panfontein, near Bloemhof.
- 10 November — Harry HartHarry Hart (athlete)Henry Beltsazer Hart was a South African athlete who competed in the 1932 Summer Olympics.He was born in Harrismith, Free State and died in Reitz....
(74), South African athlete (b. 1905)