raries, parks, theaters, hotels, restaurants, sporting events and beaches are all segregated along racial lines (Omond 46). In enforcing apartheid, the South African government has frequently employed such oppressive means as imprisonment without charge, detention without trial, and official banning. The situation in South Africa has captured the attention of the world. For the most part, the government of South Africa has been scorned by the tree nations of the world for treating the majority of its population "as if they were less than human" (Siddiqui 19).
The attempt of the whites to maintain complete control over the blacks in South Africa has been going on virtually since the first European settlers arrived in that country in the seventeenth century. In its efforts to justify apartheid, the South African government has perpetuated a myth that both the whites and the blacks began settling the area at approximately the same time. However, scientific research has proven that blacks have lived in South Africa since the fifth century B.C. (Omond 10). The Portuguese were the very first Europeans to explore South Africa; however, the Dutch were the first to settle there (de Gruchy 1). The Dutch arrived in 1652 during a search for new trade routes to India. They soon decided to settle in South Africa because of the excellent farm land, mineral resources and pleasant climate which they found there (Ngcokovane xv). In the course of their settle-ment, the Dutch began immediately to oppress the black natives who were already living in South Africa. Because of their superior weaponry, the Dutch settlers were able to force the black tribes inland, thereby claiming the best lands for themselves.
The early European settlers in South Africa began enslaving many of the blacks in order to exploit them for labor. Throughout the period of Dutch control, laws were made and enforced which
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