Wednesday, 12 February 1862
Sir Thomas Cullinan was born in the The Cape Colony in 1862. He settled in Barberton, before moving to Johannesburg in 1887. He began working as a bricklayer in Johannesburg, a job he later left for prospecting. He discovered the Premier Diamond Fields in 1898 and was co-founder and member of what became the The Transvaal Chamber of Industries. He was knighted in 1910 in recognition of his contribution to the Diamond industry and a town and the biggest diamond ever found were named after him. He married Annie Francis Harding in 1886. He died in 1936.
Thursday, 12 February 1880
Ermelo, the educational, industrial and commercial centre of a 7,750m² district in Mpumalanga Province of South Africa was founded by the Reverend Frans Lion Cachet of the Dutch Reformed Church, who was converted to Christianity in the town of Ermelo in the Netherlands. The town was reduced to a single standing house by the British during the Anglo-Boer War 2. Ermelo is the crossroads of three national highways, N2, N11 and the N17.
Wednesday, 12 February 1930
South African carver and sculptor, Tshikudo Paul Tavhana (also Thavhana), was born in Dzanani, Venda (now Limpopo Province).
Monday, 12 February 1951
Kwame Nkrumah was arrested for leading a disturbing ‘positive action’ campaign in Ghana against British rule in 1950. He was released to lead the newly formed government a year later on 12 February 1951, after his party, the Convention People’s Party (CPP), won the 1951 elections. As leader of the new government, Nkrumah prioritised unifying the four territories of the Gold Coast, as Ghana was previously known. He led the decolonisation process until the country achieved independence in 1957. Under his leadership, Ghana prospered. He was responsible for the building of new schools, railways, hospitals, a system for social security and an advanced economy. A firm believer in African liberation, Nkrumah pursued a radical pan-African policy, playing a key role in the formation of the Organisation of African Unity(now African Union -AU) in 1963. Nkrumah was deposed in a military coup in 1966. He died from skin cancer in 1972.
Friday, February 12, 1965
Public places of recreation in white areas were proclaimed in accordance with provisions of the Group Areas Act of 1950. Following the proclamation, blacks were prohibited from entering these public places of recreation. The proclamation also listed sporting events, theatres and concerts in white areas from which blacks were barred. This proclamation was made 15 years after the Group Areas Act was promulgated.
Saturday, February 12, 1972
Dr Albertus Daniel Keet (83), poet of the first Afrikaans love poems, died in Senekal, Orange Free State.
Sunday, February 12, 1989
The student activists, Porta Shabangu, Thabo Mohale and Derrick Mashobane, were ambushed and shot in Swaziland by a Vlakplaas division under command of Eugene de Kock.
Monday, February 12, 1990
African National Congress leader, Nelson Mandela, met the world’s press at the official residence of the Archbishop of Cape Town and says he “understands white fears of domination” and that “the ANC is concerned to address the problem and to find a solution which will suit both blacks and whites in this country”.
Saturday, February 12, 1994
Nineteen political parties had registered for the forthcoming April 1994 general election.
Friday, February 12, 1999
James Aubrey Polley (61), flamboyant former minister of the Methodist Church and anti-apartheid activist, died. He was detained several times, i.a. because he protected Breyten Breytenbach.
All information taken from http://www.sahistory.org.za/this_day/12/02
