Which pm spoke of the wind of change

Nationalism was a fact that policies must respect. There would be no going back. Any other course would strengthen the danger of Africa going communist. Macmillan then switched to his second message about South Africa itself. Referring to African nationalism, he said: "Of course, you understand this better than anyone. He ruled out a trade boycott, but he used quotations from St Paul and John Donne to contradict the central argument of South African foreign policy, that they had the right to do whatever they liked in their own country.

He ended with an appeal to friendship. In a typical phrase he referred to himself and his colleagues as "fleeting transient phantoms on the great stage of history" with no right to sweep aside that friendship that was the legacy of history.

One more familiar quotation, this time from Burke, and he was done. Macmillan's immediate white South African audience, for a day or two, was seduced by the prime minister's courtesy. Elsewhere, the impact became immediately clear. Britain would never stand with South Africa against African nationalism. As more colonies became independent, the contrast with apartheid would grow starker. Britain was keen to retain friendship with South Africa but would not be able or willing to shelter it from the wind of change.

British policy towards South Africa was controversial in the 34 years of apartheid that remained. We argued fiercely about joining in with sanctions.

This argument obscured the continuity of British policy. Macmillan's successors followed the line set out in the Cape Town speech. As many as , lives are estimated to have been lost in Mozambique alone as a result of destabilization, both directly and indirectly. Militarily, OAU political support allowed the Angolan government to call in Cuban forces to help repel a major South African invasion of the country — a defeat that permanently shifted the military balance against the regime in Pretoria.

With powerful Angolan and international forces near the Namibian border, South Africa agreed to implement the long-stalled UN decolonization plan for the territory.

The failure of South Africa's regional strategy and the steady escalation of mass protests at home led to the removal of the hard-line South African president, Pieter W.

Botha, in His replacement, F. Their negotiations eventually led to the end of apartheid on 10 May when Mr. Mandela became South Africa's first democratically elected president. It was, as Mr. Mandela then noted, "a common victory for justice, for peace, for human dignity" and an historic vindication of the principles and priorities of Africa's original anti-colonial leaders. At the launch of the African Union in , the assembled heads of state noted that nowhere had the OAU "proved more decisive than in the African struggle for decolonization.

Fifty years on, the "wind of change" blows across a transformed continent. A new generation, born independent, confronts the continuing challenges of forging unity, building democracy and enabling development. The struggle continues. Skip to main content. Get the free mobile apps Get the latest news from us on our apps. Welcome to the United Nations.

Toggle navigation Language:. Africa Renewal. Africa at Year of independence promoted African freedom struggles. From Africa Renewal:. August Michael Fleshman. Voting in the November election to a constituent assembly in Namibia, as the UN trust territory moved towards independence from South African rule the following year. Anti-apartheid rally in Johannesburg, South Africa, in Independent Africa was a strong source of support for the struggle against white minority rule.

Photograph: UN. Kwame Nkrumah. Although Nationalist Party politicians reacted with outrage to the speech, and became even more entrenched, the speech brought international opposition to the apartheid system out into the open. Only a month later, the Sharpeville Massacre was to add revulsion to the disapproval, and South Africa faced utter isolation, including international trade sanctions.

Even so, the country clung stubbornly to apartheid for another 30 years, until when President de Klerk began dismantling its laws and ANC leader, and future president, Nelson Mandela was released.

Harold Macmillan resigned from office in due to ill-health, after four decades in British politics. He died in , at the age of