An analysis of civil disobedience with specific reference to the role of the United Democratic Front in South Africa

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to analyse the concept of civil disobedience by providing an overview of its historical development; its objectives and strategies, and how this was applied in South Africa by the United Democratic Front in the 1980s. The sub-objectives were to determine if civil disobedience as a concept is going through, or has gone through any notable changes since its inception; to assess the extent to which United Democratic Front policies and strategies were in accordance with civil disobedience; and to briefly compare manifestations of civil disobedience in South Africa in the pre-1994 period, with some manifestations in the post-1994 period. The study included an assessment of the Defiance Campaign, analysing its impact and demise. It focused on the ANC strategy of mass action and assessed the role of the Pan African Congress. It outlined the formation of the UDF, assessing its vision, broad principles, organisation and objectives. Certain assumptions were assessed in the concluding chapters, namely that civil disobedience has developed into a broader concept than the original concept of passive resistance; that the policies and strategies of the United Democratic Front initially resembled some aspects of civil disobedience but eventually deviated from this due to a change in strategy; and that some contemporary manifestations of civil disobedience in South Africa resemble certain methods used in the 1980s, but the objectives differ.