Battle of Ventersdorp
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Ventersdorp on 9 August 1991 was a violent confrontation in the South African town of Ventersdorp between right wing supporters of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
(AWB) and the South African Police
and security forces. Though technically not a "battle
", it became known as such in the media while official sources such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) simply refer to it as an "incident". Much of its notoriety lies in the fact that it was the first time in the 43 years of Apartheid that white police officers killed white protesters.
F.W. de Klerk
was scheduled to speak. At the time, right-wing resentment of De Klerk was running high following his unbanning of the African National Congress
, releasing Nelson Mandela
from prison the year before, and beginning negotiations to end apartheid. Amid violent right wing rhetoric and talk of Boer
resistance, De Klerk's appearance in Ventersdorp, a right-wing stronghold and home town of AWB leader Eugène Terre'Blanche
, became a flashpoint. The AWB called a protest in which the town was inundated by angry opponents of De Klerk, including armed paramilitary members of the AWB. The supporters had showed up from far and wide, even a group of angered White Namibian farmers joined in the mass protest. Weapons were confiscated at several police road- blocks near Ventersdorp.
Three months before on 11 May 1991, white armed AWB supporters led by Terre'Blanche clashed with police at the Ventersdorp farm of Goedgevonden, while attempting to force black squatters off the farm. They managed to break police lines and destroy several structures when police opened fire wounding four of them. They then proceeded to the nearby black township of Tshing attacking more houses before calm was restored by the Minister of Law and Order, Adriaan Vlok
and Conservative Party
deputy, Ferdi Hartzenberg.
Many unconventional tactics were employed by the AWB. They allegedly wore plaster of Paris on their limbs to protect them from police dogs. Video footage shows AWB members locking arms and carrying rags and vinegar to lessen the effects of tear gas.
Once the AWB cut the electricity and fired on the police, the police were ordered to shoot to kill. Three policemen were wounded, none of them fatally, while the police killed one AWB member. The AWB also fired into a police minibus. Two AWB members were killed and 13 were injured when the police returned fire from the minibus.
Terre'Blanche made a point of appearing in front on television cameras and said (in Afrikaans), "Where is De Klerk? I want to talk to him. He came here armed. Here lies a man on the ground and over there lies a man" (referring to injured policemen).
In all, three AWB members and one passer-by were killed. Six policemen, 13 AWB members, and 29 civilians were injured.
The events in Ventersdorp, as well as gains by the right-wing opposition in white by-elections, led De Klerk to call a referendum
in March 1992. The referendum confirmed white support for the negotiation process, despite continued opposition from the far right.
Following the end of apartheid, Terre'Blanche and his supporters sought amnesty for the Battle of Ventersdorp and other acts. Amnesty was granted by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The three dead AWB members, A.F. Badenhorst, G.J. Koen and J.D. Conradie were honoured at an AWB ceremony in October 1994, in Ventersdorp. A monument still remembers their death.
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
The Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging is a South African far right separatist political and former paramilitary organization, since its creation dedicated to secessionist Afrikaner nationalism and the creation of an independent Boer-Afrikaner republic or "" in part of South Africa...
(AWB) and the South African Police
South African Police
The South African Police was the country's police force until 1994. The SAP traced its origin to the Dutch Watch, a paramilitary organization formed by settlers in the Cape in 1655, initially to protect civilians against attack and later to maintain law and order...
and security forces. Though technically not a "battle
Battle
Generally, a battle is a conceptual component in the hierarchy of combat in warfare between two or more armed forces, or combatants. In a battle, each combatant will seek to defeat the others, with defeat determined by the conditions of a military campaign...
", it became known as such in the media while official sources such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) simply refer to it as an "incident". Much of its notoriety lies in the fact that it was the first time in the 43 years of Apartheid that white police officers killed white protesters.
Background
The confrontation took place outside the Ventersdorp town hall where then State PresidentState President of South Africa
State 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...
F.W. de Klerk
Frederik Willem de Klerk
Frederik Willem de Klerk , often known as F. W. de Klerk, is the former seventh and last State President of apartheid-era South Africa, serving from September 1989 to May 1994...
was scheduled to speak. At the time, right-wing resentment of De Klerk was running high following his unbanning of the African National Congress
African National Congress
The 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...
, releasing Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
from prison the year before, and beginning negotiations to end apartheid. Amid violent right wing rhetoric and talk of Boer
Boer
Boer is the Dutch and Afrikaans word for farmer, which came to denote the descendants of the Dutch-speaking settlers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 18th century, as well as those who left the Cape Colony during the 19th century to settle in the Orange Free State,...
resistance, De Klerk's appearance in Ventersdorp, a right-wing stronghold and home town of AWB leader Eugène Terre'Blanche
Eugène Terre'Blanche
Eugène Ney Terre'Blanche was a former member of South Africa's Herstigte Nasionale Party who founded the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging during the apartheid era...
, became a flashpoint. The AWB called a protest in which the town was inundated by angry opponents of De Klerk, including armed paramilitary members of the AWB. The supporters had showed up from far and wide, even a group of angered White Namibian farmers joined in the mass protest. Weapons were confiscated at several police road- blocks near Ventersdorp.
Three months before on 11 May 1991, white armed AWB supporters led by Terre'Blanche clashed with police at the Ventersdorp farm of Goedgevonden, while attempting to force black squatters off the farm. They managed to break police lines and destroy several structures when police opened fire wounding four of them. They then proceeded to the nearby black township of Tshing attacking more houses before calm was restored by the Minister of Law and Order, Adriaan Vlok
Adriaan Vlok
Adriaan Johannes Vlok was Minister of Law and Order in South Africa from 1986 to 1991 in the final years of the apartheid era...
and Conservative Party
Conservative Party (South Africa)
The Conservative Party of South Africa was a conservative party formed in 1982 as a breakaway from the ruling National Party...
deputy, Ferdi Hartzenberg.
Confrontation
The AWB supporters numbered 2,000. They were armed with hunting rifles and pistols and wore protective items to shield them from the effects of an inevitable tear gas attack by the riot police. The police equalled the AWB in number, but were considerably better trained and equipped.Many unconventional tactics were employed by the AWB. They allegedly wore plaster of Paris on their limbs to protect them from police dogs. Video footage shows AWB members locking arms and carrying rags and vinegar to lessen the effects of tear gas.
Once the AWB cut the electricity and fired on the police, the police were ordered to shoot to kill. Three policemen were wounded, none of them fatally, while the police killed one AWB member. The AWB also fired into a police minibus. Two AWB members were killed and 13 were injured when the police returned fire from the minibus.
Terre'Blanche made a point of appearing in front on television cameras and said (in Afrikaans), "Where is De Klerk? I want to talk to him. He came here armed. Here lies a man on the ground and over there lies a man" (referring to injured policemen).
In all, three AWB members and one passer-by were killed. Six policemen, 13 AWB members, and 29 civilians were injured.
Aftermath
The growing conflict between right-wing groupings and the government has been identified as one of the most significant developments in the course of 1991, with the Battle of Ventersdorp as its high point.The events in Ventersdorp, as well as gains by the right-wing opposition in white by-elections, led De Klerk to call a referendum
South African referendum, 1992
The 1992 referendum was held in South Africa on 17 March of that year. In it, white South Africans were asked to vote in the country's last whites-only referendum to determine whether or not they supported the negotiated reforms begun by State President F.W. de Klerk two years earlier, in which he...
in March 1992. The referendum confirmed white support for the negotiation process, despite continued opposition from the far right.
Following the end of apartheid, Terre'Blanche and his supporters sought amnesty for the Battle of Ventersdorp and other acts. Amnesty was granted by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The three dead AWB members, A.F. Badenhorst, G.J. Koen and J.D. Conradie were honoured at an AWB ceremony in October 1994, in Ventersdorp. A monument still remembers their death.