State Versus Nelson Mandela and others: Criminal Court Case No. 253/1963 , South Africa
In 1960 the apartheid state used its powers to arrest and prosecute the top leadership structure of the largest internal anti-apartheid organisations involved in the struggle for a democratic South Africa. This trail led to the to the imprisonment of Nelson Mandela for 27 years.
As a result of this trial, the world’s attention was drawn to the iniquities of the apartheid regime. This strengthened the international movement against the system, leading the United Nations to declare apartheid ‘a crime against humanity’.
The records are held by the National Archives and Records Service, South Africa. This documentary heritage was recommended for inclusion in the Memory of the World Register in 2007.
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See the UNESCO Register for more information.
A detailed description of the records can be found in pages 525-526 of the publication Memory of the World: The Treasures that Record Our History from 1700 BC to the Present Day.