Biko Dies in Custody: Apartheid Martyr Born
Steve Biko died in police custody on September 12, 1977, from massive brain injuries sustained during interrogation by South African security police in Port Elizabeth. He was 30. Biko had been the founder of the Black Consciousness Movement, which rejected white liberal leadership of the anti-apartheid struggle and insisted that Black South Africans must define their own liberation. He was arrested under the Terrorism Act, which allowed indefinite detention without trial. After being beaten, he was transported 750 miles to Pretoria in the back of a Land Rover while naked and comatose. The inquest found no one responsible. Minister of Justice Jimmy Kruger said Biko's death "left him cold." International outrage accelerated sanctions against the apartheid regime.
September 12, 1977
49 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Apartheid
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South Africa
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Steve Biko
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Internal resistance to apartheid
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Steve Biko
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Pretoria
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South Africa
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Apartheid
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Puerto Elizabeth
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cerebral hemorrhage
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Bürgerrechtler
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Embargo
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United Nations Security Council
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1946
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