It has an area of 1,219,090 square km. Between 1810 and 1814 there were Republican governments although nominally remained loyal to the Spanish monarchy. South Africa produced Formula One motor racing's 1979 world champion Jody Scheckter. On 9 January 1992, Bosnian Serb authorities declared the creation of the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, now called Republika Srpska ("Serb Republic", not to be confused with the Republic of Serbia) as a state within the country of Bosnia of Herzegovina. In the Cape Province there was a smaller majority, despite the removal of the Cape Coloured franchise, while Natal voted overwhelmingly against; in the constituencies of Durban North, Pinetown and Durban Musgrave, the vote against a republic was 89.7, 83.7 and 92.7 per cent respectively. The day is also sometimes referred to as Brother and Sister Day because it honors the relationship . [207] South Africa is alleged to have conducted a nuclear test over the Atlantic in 1979,[208] although this is officially denied; de Klerk maintained that South Africa had "never conducted a clandestine nuclear test. The region further north is known as Namaqualand,[114] which becomes more arid near the Orange River. In 1939, the party split over the entry of the union into World War II as an ally of the United Kingdom, a move which the National Party followers strongly opposed. [94] The Director-General of the South African Treasury, Dondo Mogajane, has said that, "SA is showing the signs of a failing state more common in countries like Sierra Leone and Liberia". [273] In 2001 Eskom was named the best electricity utility in the entire world. [31] Drawing cheering crowds of 2,000 people in Durban and 1,500 in Pietermaritzburg, the League became the largest political organisation in Natal, with 28 branches across the province, with Selby calling for 80,000 signatories to the Covenant. And according to the World Wildlife Fund, South Africa is home to around a third of all succulent species. ; South Africa ranks number 25 in the list of countries (and . The country is a member of the Group of 77 and chaired the organisation in 2006. The little rain that falls tends to fall in winter,[113] which results in one of the world's most spectacular displays of flowers carpeting huge stretches of veld in spring (AugustSeptember). A list of current public holidays in South Africa: [1] In gold, the National Day The Public Holidays Act (Act No 36 of 1994) [8] states that whenever a public holiday falls on a Sunday, the Monday following it will be a public holiday. Its pluralistic makeup is reflected in the constitution's recognition of 11 official languages, the fourth-highest number in the world. Fall in South Africa. As a result, South Africa's membership application was withdrawn, meaning that upon its becoming a republic on 31 May 1961, the country's Commonwealth membership simply lapsed. "[181] The country's three branches of government are split over different cities. [50] Vrijburgers who became independent farmers on the frontier were known as Boers, with some adopting semi-nomadic lifestyles being denoted as trekboers. The current population of South Africa is 61,555,232 as of Friday, July 7, 2023, based on Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data. [27][28] On 10 November 2012 the Minister of Home Affairs Naledi Pandor told Christian protesters objecting to the removal of Christian public holidays that she had not received any enquiries from the CRL Rights Commission yet. (1984). [262] Coal and iron ore are mainly transported on these lines, the country's rail network carried nearly 230 million tons of freight in 2017 however, this has declined to 179 million tons in 2021. [34], Between May 1956 and June 1958, the anti-republican Freedom Radio, set up by John Lang, broadcast from the Natal Midlands, later resuming broadcasts shortly before the referendum in October 1960 until the proclamation of the republic in May 1961. [9], During the visit to South Africa by King George VI and his family in 1947, the Afrikaans-language newspaper Die Transvaler, of which Verwoerd was editor, ignored the royal tour, making reference only to "busy streets" in Johannesburg. While the many broadcasters and publications reflect the diversity of the population as a whole, the most commonly used language is English. [1], Originally every independent country in the Commonwealth was a Dominion with the British monarch as head of state. During the 20th century, the black majority sought to claim more rights from the dominant white minority, which played a large role in the country's recent history and politics. Freedom Day stands as a reminder of the courage and sacrifices of all those who fought for an end to apartheid. A negotiation process followed. The Soviet Union agreed in early 1990 to give up its monopoly of political power. [124], With more than 22,000 different vascular plants, or about 9% of all the known species of plants on Earth,[129] South Africa is particularly rich in plant diversity. In 1934, the South African Party and National Party merged to form the United Party, seeking reconciliation between Afrikaners and English-speaking whites. It was a warning given to all of us, English-speaking and Afrikaans-speaking, republican and anti-republican. [269] South Africa is the 7th largest coal producer in the world and produces in excess of 248 million tonnes of coal and consumes almost three-quarters of that domestically. [67], The Republic of South Africa was declared on 31 May 1961, Queen Elizabeth II ceased to be head of state, and the last Governor General of the Union, Charles R. Swart, took office as the first State President. Cormack and Klug received Nobel Prizes for their work. The Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL Rights Commission), a chapter nine institution established in 2004, held countrywide consultative public hearings in June and July 2012 to assess the need for a review of public holidays following the receipt of complaints from minority groups about unfair discrimination. [1], 9 January in Republika Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina), 15 November in Brazil and Northern Cyprus, 29 November in former Yugoslavia (19451990), introducing citations to additional sources, United States Declaration of Independence, democracy, along with the monarchy, was restored, Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic, Anti-Fascist Council of National Liberation of Yugoslavia, Commmoration du 18 dcembre Tillabri: Sons et lumires la cit des Maga, "In Barbados, parliament votes to amend constitution, paving the way to republican status", "Republic Day in Central African Republic in 2021", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Republic_Day&oldid=1154629018, Independence won from the Spanish Empire. Transnet Freight Rail mainly operates freight services while PRASA operates commuter services. [30][31] On 18 January 2015 the South African Law Reform Commission published a discussion document on legislation administered by the Department of Home Affairs in which it suggested "that either these holidays be reviewed or that equal weight be given to holidays of other faiths".[32][33][34]. The Mahlabatini Declaration of Faith, signed by Mangosuthu Buthelezi and Harry Schwarz in 1974, enshrined the principles of peaceful transition of power and equality for all, the first of such agreements by black and white political leaders in South Africa. [154], South African Muslims comprise mainly Coloureds and Indians. Under apartheid, schools for black people were subject to discrimination through inadequate funding and a separate syllabus called Bantu Education which only taught skills sufficient to work as labourers. On 29 October 1923, the Turkish constitution was amended and Turkey became a republic. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town, Atlas of Southern Africa. The cuisine is mostly meat-based and has spawned the distinctively South African social gathering known as the braai, a variation of the barbecue. Since 2004, this day is a national commemoration day, without being a public or national Holiday. The Union of South Africa covers the period from 1910 to 1961 and given the conservative issuing policy compared to later years the challenge is different to the Republic era that started in 1961 and continues to this day. On 1 February 1946 Hungary commemorates the proclamation of the Republic of Hungary. A national holiday since 1993. It traditionally ends with a colourful flypast by Indian Air Force jets in a tiranga formation. Complete guide to South Africa - Lonely Planet | Africa [19], South Africa is a middle power in international affairs; it maintains significant regional influence and is a member of both the Commonwealth of Nations and the G20. On 29 November 1943 the Anti-Fascist Council of National Liberation of Yugoslavia (AVNOJ) established the foundations of post-war Yugoslavia as a socialist republic, which was officially proclaimed on the same date in 1945. Day of Reconciliation, also called Day of the Vow, Day of the Covenant, or Dingane's Day, public holiday observed in South Africa on December 16. [212], South Africa has the world's largest private security industry,[213] with over 10,380 private security companies and 2.5 million private security personnel of which over 556,000 are active,[214] making it bigger than the South African Police Force and Military combined. South Africa - The World Factbook This intensified British subjugation of the indigenous people. South Africa is also a member of the Southern African Development Community, South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone, Southern African Customs Union, Antarctic Treaty System, World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund, G20, G8+5, and the Port Management Association of Eastern and Southern Africa. [199] During the 2021 South African unrest, South Africa's worst violence since the end of apartheid, saw the deployment of 25,000 troops, more than a dozen military helicopters and heavily armed vehicles deployed in the nation's KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces to assist the South African Police in ending the riots and looting, this was one of the nation's largest military deployments since 1994, the largest deployment of troops since the end of apartheid was in March 2020, when 70,000 troops were deployed to enforce the nation's strict lockdown laws to combat the spread of COVID-19. [15] According to the 2011 census, the two most spoken first languages are Zulu (22.7%) and Xhosa (16.0%). [33][34][35] Archaeologists have recovered extensive fossil remains from a series of caves in Gauteng Province. South Africa - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [190][191] In 2011, South Africa joined the Brazil-Russia-India-China (BRICS) grouping of countries, identified by Zuma as the country's largest trading partners and also the largest trading partners with Africa as a whole. However, the following Monday, 26 December 2011, was the Day of Goodwill and therefore decreased the number of paid public holidays for the year. Despite opposition to apartheid both within and outside the country, the government legislated for a continuation of apartheid. The leaders of South Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo have signed nearly 40 trade agreements including one to revive a hydroelectric scheme. "[209] Six nuclear devices were completed between 1980 and 1990 but all were dismantled by 1991. [84], Under the new Constitution, Afrikaans and English remained official languages, but the status of Afrikaans in relation to Dutch was altered; whereas the South Africa Act had made Dutch an official language alongside English, with Dutch defined to include Afrikaans under the Official Languages of the Union Act in 1925, the 1961 Constitution reversed this by making Afrikaans an official language alongside English, defining Afrikaans to include Dutch. [121] South Africa contributes considerable carbon dioxide emissions, being the 14th largest emitter of carbon dioxide,[122] primarily from its heavy reliance on coal and oil for energy production. . [41] On 4 December, he landed at Walfisch Bay (now known as Walvis Bay in present-day Namibia). [198], The SANDF are often deployed in crime fighting and whenever the South African Police Service (SAPS) are no longer able to control the situation. Only three other African countriesLiberia, Ethiopia, and Egypthad been independent prior to that point. [20][21] It is a developing country, ranking 109th on the Human Development Index, the 7th highest on the continent. The legally institutionalised segregation became known as apartheid. 81 Interesting Facts About South Africa They have been joined by black or white South African converts as well as those from other parts of Africa. Dated 1960. South Africa first won the 1995 Rugby World Cup, which it hosted. Afrikaans music covers multiple genres, such as the contemporary Steve Hofmeyr, the punk rock band Fokofpolisiekar, and the singer-songwriter Jeremy Loops. White South Africans may also speak European languages, including Italian, Portuguese (also spoken by black Angolans and Mozambicans), Dutch, German, and Greek, while some Indian South Africans and more recent migrants from South Asia speak Indian languages, such as Gujarati, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu. [225] The incidence of child and infant rape is among the highest in the world, largely as a result of the virgin cleansing myth, and a number of high-profile cases (sometimes as young as eight months)[225] have outraged the nation. South Africa - Apartheid, Colonization, Freedom | Britannica [148] These unofficial languages may be used in certain official uses in limited areas where it has been determined that these languages are prevalent. These were the first sovereign republics in the history of both countries and Nepal was the first democratic parliamentary republic only achieved consistency after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. After the cultural and economic needs, the Afrikaner will have to devote his attention to the constitutional needs of our people. It is famous for the most extensive areas of forests in South Africa (a generally forest-poor country). Traum, Alexander (2014). .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct,.mw-parser-output .geo-inline-hidden{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}30S 25E / 30S 25E / -30; 25, This article is about the country. [224] Rapes are also perpetrated by children (some as young as ten). In Mpumalanga Province, several stone circles have been found along with a stone arrangement that has been named Adam's Calendar, and the ruins are thought to be created by the Bakone, a Northern Sotho people.[39][40]. [48], Of the 156 House of Assembly parliamentary constituencies, a majority voted for a republic in 104 (all 103 won by the National Party in the 1958 general election, plus the United Party-held seat of Sunnyside in Pretoria), while a majority voted against in the other 52 (all held by the United Party).[49]. In 1817 there was re-established the independentist government and established a republican system in different constitutional texts. South Africa | History, Capital, Flag, Map, Population, & Facts [286] However, water supply and sanitation has come under increasing pressure in recent years despite a commitment made by the government to improve service standards and provide investment subsidies to the water industry. Another attack by the Lydenburg Volunteer Corps was also repulsed. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) attributes this difference to South Africa's widespread welfare system. Head Of State And Government: President: Cyril Ramaphosa Capitals (De Facto): Pretoria 2 (executive); Bloemfontein 3 (judicial); Cape Town (legislative) Population: (2023 est.) SAPS is responsible for investigating crime and security throughout the country. Since 1994, the country has had an official name in each of its 11 official languages. South Africa - Wikipedia Julius Nyerere, then Chief Minister of Tanganyika, indicated that his country, which was due to gain independence in 1961, would not join the Commonwealth were apartheid South Africa to remain a member. [54][55] An offshoot of the Zulu, the Matabele people created a larger empire that included large parts of the highveld under their king Mzilikazi. [83] The targets were mainly legal and illegal migrants, and refugees seeking asylum, but a third of the victims were South African citizens. [35], Black South Africans, who were denied a vote in the referendum, were not against the establishment of a republic per se, but saw the new constitution as a direct rejection of the principle of one person, one vote, as expressed in the Freedom Charter, drafted by the African National Congress and its allies in the Congress Alliance. [44] Dutch interest was aroused after 1647, when two employees of the Dutch East India Company were shipwrecked at the cape for several months. [168] In 2018, HIV prevalencethe percentage of people living with HIVamong adults (1549 years) was 20.4%, and in the same year 71,000 people died from an AIDS-related illness. Freedom Day is a public holiday in South Africa celebrated on 27 April. [266] During the 2022 Skytrax World Airport Awards, Cape Town International Airport was voted the best airport on the African continent for the seventh consecutive year, Durban's King Shaka International Airport was voted the second best in Africa and Johannesburg's O.R. [95] Former minister Jay Naidoo has said that South Africa is in serious trouble and is showing signs of a failed state, with record unemployment levels and the fact that many young people will not find a job in their lifetime. 18 December 1958 is commemorated in the Republic of Niger as Republic Day, the national holiday. [159] Primary schools span the first seven years of schooling. [134] Since South Africa is home to a third of all succulent species (many endemic to the Karoo), it makes it a hotspot for plant poaching, leading to many species to be threatened with extinction. Taking Canada's Indian Act as a framework,[67] the nationalist government classified all peoples into three races (Whites, Blacks, Indians and Coloured people (people of mixed race)) and developed rights and limitations for each. Nadine Gordimer became the first South African to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, in 1991. Other hominin remains have come from the sites of Makapansgat in Limpopo Province; Cornelia and Florisbad in Free State Province; Border Cave in KwaZulu-Natal Province; Klasies River Caves in Eastern Cape Province; and Pinnacle Point, Elandsfontein and Die Kelders Cave in Western Cape Province. Over 27,000 Boer women and children died in the British concentration camps. After unification in 1910, South Africa had its own parliament which passed laws specific for South Africa, building on those previously passed for the individual member colonies. [299] Other sports with significant support are swimming, athletics, golf, boxing, tennis, rugby league, ringball, field hockey, surfing and netball. South African Public Holidays New public holidays to take effect from 1995 have been announced: . [243] During the presidency of Jacob Zuma, the government increased the role of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). We must resist, resist, and resist it - and the Nationalist Government. Black musicians have developed unique styles called Kwaito and Amapiano, that is said to have taken over radio, television, and magazines. [135] The last census was held in 2011, with estimates produced on an annual basis. [267], South Africa has a very large energy sector and is currently the only country on the African continent that possesses a Nuclear power plant. Plantations of imported tree species are predominant, particularly the non-native eucalyptus and pine. This relatively well-watered area is home to a great proportion of the country's commercial farmlands and contains its largest conurbation (Gauteng). Africa Day was first marked over six decades ago. The monument of Republic Day is at Marsa. [100] In May 2023, the Executive Chairman of Sygnia, Magda Wierzycka, said that "warnings of South Africa becoming a failed state are lagging reality we are already there". The closeness of the vote52.14 percent in favor, 47.42 percent opposedreflected the mixed feelings of both the Afrikaners and the British settlers, although the former generally supported the idea. [169], A 2008 study revealed that HIV/AIDS infection is distinctly divided along racial lines: 13.6% of blacks are HIV-positive, whereas only 0.3% of whites have the virus.
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