About this site

This resource is hosted by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, but was compiled and authored by Padraig O’Malley. It is the product of almost two decades of research and includes analyses, chronologies, historical documents, and interviews from the apartheid and post-apartheid eras.

Umkhonto we Sizwe - Brief Summary

Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) (Spear of the nation) was the military wing of the African National Congress (ANC). Founded December 16 1961 by the ANC and SACP as the answer to the political, social and economical opression against blacks by the South African Apartheid regime. The MK carried out numerous bombings of military, industrial, civilian and infrastructural sites. Notable among these is the January 8 1982 (to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the formation of the ANC) attack on the Koeberg nuclear power plant in Cape Town. Umkhonto we Sizwe was officially disbanded on August 1 1990.

This resource is hosted by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, but was compiled and authored by Padraig O’Malley. Return to theThis resource is hosted by the site.