On 3 September 1979, Dr. Frederik van Zyl Slabbert was elected as the leader of the opposition party, the Progressive Federal Party (PFP). He took over from Colin Wells Eglin, who was elected the party's National Chairman. Eglin replaced van Zyl Slabbert when he resigned in 1986. Born in Pretoria to an Afrikaner family, van Zyl Slabbert grew up in Pietersburg (now known as Polokwane). Van Zyl Slabbert matriculated from the Pietersburg Afrikaans High School in 1958.

President F W de Klerk announces that South Africa's first non-racial democratic elections will be held from 26-28 April 1994.  

Location: back to this day in history search archive On 22 July 1994, the government of Sir Dawda Jawara was overthrown in a military coup in Gambia. While Jawara's thirty year rule was characterised by mostly good governance, he failed to address the endemic corruption in the Gabonese army and security sectors. Surrounded by Senegal, Jawara enjoyed their support for most of his rule to the extent that they suppressed an attempted military coup in 1981.

The former South Africa Minister of Education, Dr. Sibusiso Bengu warned the University of Stellenbosch that it could not continue to be an exclusively Afrikaans-speaking University within a new democratic South Africa. This followed the University's refusal to comply with the new regulations for integrated higher education, which included an inclusive medium of instruction. Since its establishment in 1866, Stellenbosch University had maintained a white Afrikaner student body through the use of the Afrikaans language as the medium of instruction.

A 13 year old Welsh schoolgirl, Lucille Sticker,  from Waterhall Secondary School in Cardiff  wrote a goodwill message and hoped that her letter would be passed on to any African girl in Cape Town. The letter was addressed to the “Head girl, any non-European Secondary School, Cape Town South Africa”. It was unfortunately delivered to the Cape Department of Education.

The 68 year-old Ross was born in the Cape, but moved to Transvaal where he spent the greater part of his life. During the Second World War Ross served as an Officer in the Third Transvaal Scottish Regiment. After the war he devoted himself to the task of providing housing for White and non-White ex-servicemen. He was educated at King Edward School. The United Party (UP) was established after the Great Depression of 1929 - 1939. It came into being as a fusion between Jan Smut’s South African Party (SAP) and J.B.M. Hertzog’s National Party (NP) in 1934.

The Cape Town Gazette and African Advertiser was the first newspaper to be published in Africa. It was started by two slave dealers, Alexander Walker and John Robertson. In its early stages, the newspaper was simply used by the government as a mouth-piece. It was only in 1829, after the owners had been involved in a very a long struggle with the government, and the Colony granted freedom of the press, that the newspaper became free from government censorship.

Nigeria's Federal Troops launched a major offensive against multiple targets in Biafra on the 19th of August 1968. Despite claims that scores of people were killed, the leader of the Nigerian military government, General Yakubu Gowon said that his troops were 'behaving correctly'. Biafra had declared itself independent from Nigeria on 30 May 1967 which sparked tensions. The root of the conflict was economic, ethnic, cultural and religious tensions among the various peoples of the country.

On 17 September 1995, the Roman Catholic’s Pope John Paul II celebrated a papal mass in South Africa as he began his six day tour of Africa.

The South African Prime Minister, P.W. Botha lashed out on the Buthelezi Commission of Inquiry concerning the future of Natal. Botha said that the National Party (NP) won’t serve on the Commission.  Chief Buthelezi said the Prime Minister had told him the government was clear in its stance to the terms of reference to the Buthelezi Commission of Inquiry. The NP government acknowledged his right to institute a commission of inquiry into the future of Natal and would be supportive of genuine and responsible political efforts seeking to establish new constitutional machinery in his state.