2002 Soweto bombings
Encyclopedia
The 2002 Soweto Bombings were a string of terrorist attacks that occurred in Soweto
in South Africa
's Gauteng province. Eight blasts took place on 30 October 2002, leaving one woman dead and her husband severely injured. One of the blasts severely damaged a mosque
, while others targeted railways and petrol stations in the area. Police prevented one blast. Another bomb later detonated outside the Nan Hua
Buddhist
temple in Bronkhorstspruit, east of Pretoria
. A white supremacist group, the Warriors of the Boer Nation
, claimed responsibility for these explosions in a message sent to an Afrikaans
newspaper.
Two subsequent explosions on 28 November 2002 damaged a bridge in the area, and another damaged a police helicopter in a small airport. In all, at least ten, and possibly twelve, individual bombings made up the 2002 Soweto Bombings attack.
(or ANC). They feared the concurrent violence against whites in Zimbabwe
would spill across the border into South Africa. In particular, there were concerns about the rising wave of crime
across the country.
In the month leading up to the bombings, sixteen members of the Boeremag
(a militant far-right organization) had been put on trial for plotting to overthrow the government
. This group, and others like it, had been formed in response to the ANC rebellion in the early 1990s —and the resulting violence, described by the then ruling National Party
government as terrorism
. South Africa has had a history of such events. The AWB
were responsible for several assassination
s and attacks during the late 1980s and early 1990s, before its leader, Eugene Terre'Blanche
, was imprisoned. In 1996, bombs had targeted a Western Cape
shopping center, killing four Cape Coloured shoppers, and injuring sixty others.
, causing chaos with public transport networks. Another bomb ripped apart the walls of a mosque, and another explosion (in a residential area) killed a woman, Claudia Mokone, while severely injuring her husband. A petrol station was targeted in one of the attacks. Two other people were injured in other bombings. A device placed in the basement of the Nan Hua Buddhist temple was prevented from causing fatalities when it was kicked away by someone at the scene before detonating, although it still injured two people. (At the time, it was not known whether this bomb was related to the attacks. The police later stated that it was.) Police prevented a blast at another petrol station in the area, when they received a tip-off about two white men who were said to be acting suspiciously and "rolling something".
These terrorist attacks caused horror and grief in the community, where no such violence had occurred throughout its history. Fears were heightened soon after when a power failure struck Soweto, although this was not related to terrorism.
in KwaZulu-Natal
. Nobody was hurt. A more powerful bomb had exploded the previous weekend at an airport used by police, damaging a helicopter, although authorities could not confirm that either explosion was linked to the previous attacks.
organisation, including Vorster, were subsequently charged with: treason
for their part in the bombings; the murder of Claudia Makone; attempted murder for a plot to kill Nelson Mandela
with a car bomb
; and conspiracy to overthrow the government. According to The Namibian
, 26 pipe bomb
s were found in a rural area of Cape Province
by police searching for the terrorists responsible for the attacks.
There was a heavy police presence in the area where the trial of the men took place, to prevent further attacks and escape attempts. There was speculation that several officers in the South African police
and military
had had links to the attacks. The trial was expected to last more than two years, and is still ongoing at the time of this writing (2005).
The trial was adjourned several times due to legal arguments. It soon became politicised as Paul Kruger, the defence lawyer, argued that the South African government was illegitimate and unconstitutional
, and that the first multi-racial elections
in the country had not been valid, as white voters had never been consulted. The defence originally planned to call the former President of South Africa
, FW De Klerk, as a witness to prove their case. The court later ruled that he could not be forced to stand.
At trial, the alleged terrorists claimed that they had been subject to torture
in the jail in which they were being held. They had, in fact, been forced at times to listen to very loud rap music and kwaito
in the Pretoria prison in which they were being held. The judge presiding over the case, Eberhardt Bertelsmann, forbade the prison authorities from broadcasting Metro FM
, the offending radio station. However, the defendants had to buy portable radio
s and batteries
for the inmates who wanted to continue listening to the music.
, which asserted their "God-given right to rule the nation". They subsequently issued additional threats, asserting that there would be "further surprises" in store. One of the group's stated aims was to assassinate Nelson Mandela and possibly restore apartheid to South Africa, although others have suggested that their aim was to start a race war
and "kick the blacks out of the country", while still others have asserted that they aimed to set up an independent white Afrikaner nation
.
A letter to the police sent by the organisation suggested a religious motive to the attacks, accusing those who opposed them of being the enemies of the "God of Blood River," describing themselves as "Soldiers of God" and suggesting that the bombings were "the beginning of the end" of the ANC. The letter declared:
In what South African intelligence services interpreted as referring to the attacks on the mosque and the Buddhist temple, the letter went on to say that no "heathen temples or places of prayer would be permitted in the Southland". It also vowed to avenge farm murders and rapes carried out by South African criminals.
In their book, "Volk, Faith and Fatherland", researchers Martin Schonteiff and Henri Boschoff argued that "Given the real high levels of violent crime, rising white unemployment and the campaign against white farmers in Zimbabwe
, such arguments [i.e., the ones used by the terrorists] may be capable of eliciting widespread sympathy among conservatively-minded Afrikaners"
.
All of the mainstream political parties usually associated with whites, the Democratic Alliance, the New National Party and the Freedom Front, condemned the bombings, and the Defence Minister, Mosiuoa Lekota
pointed out that most white South Africans were loyal citizens.
Soweto
Soweto 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...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
's Gauteng province. Eight blasts took place on 30 October 2002, leaving one woman dead and her husband severely injured. One of the blasts severely damaged a mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
, while others targeted railways and petrol stations in the area. Police prevented one blast. Another bomb later detonated outside the Nan Hua
Nan Hua Temple
Nan Hua Temple is the largest Buddhist temple and seminary in Africa, and is situated in the Cultura Park suburb of Bronkhorstspruit, South Africa. It is the African headquarters of the Fo Guang Shan Order, covering over...
Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
temple in Bronkhorstspruit, east of Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
. A white supremacist group, the Warriors of the Boer Nation
Warriors of the Boer Nation
The Warriors of the Boer Nation is a suspected but unsubstantiated South African Boer terrorist group aimed at Boer separation which based on unauthenticated letters sent to pro government Afrikaans newspapers in 2002 purportedly claimed responsibility for a series of bombings which started in the...
, claimed responsibility for these explosions in a message sent to an Afrikaans
Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...
newspaper.
Two subsequent explosions on 28 November 2002 damaged a bridge in the area, and another damaged a police helicopter in a small airport. In all, at least ten, and possibly twelve, individual bombings made up the 2002 Soweto Bombings attack.
Background
Since the overthrow of the apartheid system in 1994, many white South Africans —Afrikaners in particular —felt alienated by black rule and the government of the African National CongressAfrican 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...
(or ANC). They feared the concurrent violence against whites in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
would spill across the border into South Africa. In particular, there were concerns about the rising wave of crime
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
across the country.
In the month leading up to the bombings, sixteen members of the Boeremag
Boeremag
The Boeremag is a South African right-wing activism group with white separatist aims and is accused of planning to overthrow the ruling African National Congress government and to reinstate a new Boer administered republic reminiscent of the era when Boers administered independent republics...
(a militant far-right organization) had been put on trial for plotting to overthrow the government
Government of South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a constitutional democracy with a three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a nearly unique system that combines aspects of parliamentary and presidential systems. Legislative authority is held by the Parliament of South Africa...
. This group, and others like it, had been formed in response to the ANC rebellion in the early 1990s —and the resulting violence, described by the then ruling National Party
National Party (South Africa)
The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a...
government as terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
. South Africa has had a history of such events. The AWB
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...
were responsible for several assassination
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
s and attacks during the late 1980s and early 1990s, before its leader, Eugene 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...
, was imprisoned. In 1996, bombs had targeted a Western Cape
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger Cape Province...
shopping center, killing four Cape Coloured shoppers, and injuring sixty others.
The bombs
Two of the 30 October 2002 explosions targeted the railway lines at Lenasia, which connects Soweto to JohannesburgJohannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, causing chaos with public transport networks. Another bomb ripped apart the walls of a mosque, and another explosion (in a residential area) killed a woman, Claudia Mokone, while severely injuring her husband. A petrol station was targeted in one of the attacks. Two other people were injured in other bombings. A device placed in the basement of the Nan Hua Buddhist temple was prevented from causing fatalities when it was kicked away by someone at the scene before detonating, although it still injured two people. (At the time, it was not known whether this bomb was related to the attacks. The police later stated that it was.) Police prevented a blast at another petrol station in the area, when they received a tip-off about two white men who were said to be acting suspiciously and "rolling something".
These terrorist attacks caused horror and grief in the community, where no such violence had occurred throughout its history. Fears were heightened soon after when a power failure struck Soweto, although this was not related to terrorism.
Later bombings
Almost a month later, on 28 November 2002, another bomb exploded on a bridge near Port EdwardPort Edward, KwaZulu-Natal
Port Edward is a small resort town situated on the south coast of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, right on the Eastern Cape Province border.Port Edward is a tourist resort for seasonal visitors from more affluent regions of South Africa...
in KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal is a province of South Africa. Prior to 1994, the territory now known as KwaZulu-Natal was made up of the province of Natal and the homeland of KwaZulu....
. Nobody was hurt. A more powerful bomb had exploded the previous weekend at an airport used by police, damaging a helicopter, although authorities could not confirm that either explosion was linked to the previous attacks.
Investigation and trial
Thomas Vorster, a top military intelligence officer under the apartheid regime, was arrested for his alleged involvement into the attacks shortly after they occurred. Twenty white men in the BoeremagBoeremag
The Boeremag is a South African right-wing activism group with white separatist aims and is accused of planning to overthrow the ruling African National Congress government and to reinstate a new Boer administered republic reminiscent of the era when Boers administered independent republics...
organisation, including Vorster, were subsequently charged with: treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
for their part in the bombings; the murder of Claudia Makone; attempted murder for a plot to kill 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...
with a car bomb
Car bomb
A car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
; and conspiracy to overthrow the government. According to The Namibian
The Namibian
The Namibian is a the largest daily newspaper in Namibia. It publishes in English and Oshiwambo.-History:It was established by Gwen Lister in 1985 as a weekly newspaper reliant on support of donors, which aimed to promote Namibian independence from South Africa. Its first edition appeared on 30...
, 26 pipe bomb
Pipe bomb
A pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device, a tightly sealed section of pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple low explosives can be used to produce a relatively large explosion, and the fragmentation of the pipe itself creates potentially...
s were found in a rural area of Cape Province
Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
by police searching for the terrorists responsible for the attacks.
There was a heavy police presence in the area where the trial of the men took place, to prevent further attacks and escape attempts. There was speculation that several officers in the South African police
South African Police Service
The South African Police Service is the national police force of the Republic of South Africa. Its 1116 police stations in South Africa are divided according to the provincial borders, and a Provincial Commissioner is appointed in each province...
and military
South African National Defence Force
The South African National Defence Force is the armed forces of South Africa. The military as it exists today was created in 1994, following South Africa's first post-apartheid national elections and the adoption of a new constitution...
had had links to the attacks. The trial was expected to last more than two years, and is still ongoing at the time of this writing (2005).
The trial was adjourned several times due to legal arguments. It soon became politicised as Paul Kruger, the defence lawyer, argued that the South African government was illegitimate and unconstitutional
Constitutionality
Constitutionality is the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution. Acts that are not in accordance with the rules laid down in the constitution are deemed to be ultra vires.-See also:*ultra vires*Company law*Constitutional law...
, and that the first multi-racial elections
South African general election, 1994
The South African general election of 1994 was an election held in South Africa to mark the end of apartheid, therefore also the first held with universal adult suffrage. The election was conducted under the direction of the Independent Electoral Commission .Millions queued in lines over a three...
in the country had not been valid, as white voters had never been consulted. The defence originally planned to call the former President of South Africa
President of South Africa
The President of the Republic of South Africa is the head of state and head of government under South Africa's Constitution. From 1961 to 1994, the head of state was called the State President....
, FW De Klerk, as a witness to prove their case. The court later ruled that he could not be forced to stand.
At trial, the alleged terrorists claimed that they had been subject to torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
in the jail in which they were being held. They had, in fact, been forced at times to listen to very loud rap music and kwaito
Kwaito
Kwaito is a music genre that emerged in Johannesburg, South Africa, during the 1990s. It is a variant of house music featuring the use of African sounds and samples. Typically at a slower tempo range than other styles of house music, Kwaito often contains catchy melodic and percussive loop samples,...
in the Pretoria prison in which they were being held. The judge presiding over the case, Eberhardt Bertelsmann, forbade the prison authorities from broadcasting Metro FM
Metro FM
Metro FM is a national radio station in South Africa owned by the SABC.- History :The station started broadcasting in October, 1986 as Radio Metro to compete with the now defunct Radio Bop...
, the offending radio station. However, the defendants had to buy portable radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
s and batteries
Battery (electricity)
An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy. Since the invention of the first battery in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially since the technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a common power...
for the inmates who wanted to continue listening to the music.
Motivation
The terrorists were said to be motivated by a sense of alienation and frustration with their situation in South Africa, as well as religious beliefs similar to Christian IdentityChristian Identity
Christian Identity is a label applied to a wide variety of loosely affiliated believers and churches with a racialized theology. Many promote a Eurocentric interpretation of Christianity.According to Chester L...
, which asserted their "God-given right to rule the nation". They subsequently issued additional threats, asserting that there would be "further surprises" in store. One of the group's stated aims was to assassinate Nelson Mandela and possibly restore apartheid to South Africa, although others have suggested that their aim was to start a race war
Race war
Race war is a term referring to developing hostilities between ethnic groups divided on the basis of racial group or skin color. The term may refer to specific violent acts or to general overt or covert hostilities between ethnic groups; compare ethnic conflict.-Manson:The murders perpetrated by...
and "kick the blacks out of the country", while still others have asserted that they aimed to set up an independent white Afrikaner nation
White separatism
White separatism is a separatist political movement that seeks separate economic and cultural development for white people. White separatists generally claim genetic affiliation with Anglo-Saxon cultures, Nordic cultures, or other white European cultures...
.
A letter to the police sent by the organisation suggested a religious motive to the attacks, accusing those who opposed them of being the enemies of the "God of Blood River," describing themselves as "Soldiers of God" and suggesting that the bombings were "the beginning of the end" of the ANC. The letter declared:
In what South African intelligence services interpreted as referring to the attacks on the mosque and the Buddhist temple, the letter went on to say that no "heathen temples or places of prayer would be permitted in the Southland". It also vowed to avenge farm murders and rapes carried out by South African criminals.
Aftermath
The attacks, although relatively minor, provoked debate in the South African media, as well as the government, about the position of whites in South Africa, especially Afrikaners —who had largely dominated politics before the end of apartheid. Many Afrikaners felt stigmatised that they were unfairly viewed as racists linked to terrorist groups, even though the majority rejected such acts.In their book, "Volk, Faith and Fatherland", researchers Martin Schonteiff and Henri Boschoff argued that "Given the real high levels of violent crime, rising white unemployment and the campaign against white farmers in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
, such arguments [i.e., the ones used by the terrorists] may be capable of eliciting widespread sympathy among conservatively-minded Afrikaners"
.
All of the mainstream political parties usually associated with whites, the Democratic Alliance, the New National Party and the Freedom Front, condemned the bombings, and the Defence Minister, Mosiuoa Lekota
Mosiuoa Lekota
Mosiuoa Gerard Patrick Lekota is a South African politician who currently serves as the President and Leader of the Congress of the People since 16 December 2008. Previously, under President Thabo Mbeki, he served in the Cabinet of South Africa as Minister of Defence from 17 June 1999 to 25...
pointed out that most white South Africans were loyal citizens.