Nelson Holilala Mandela(born July 18, 1918, Qunu, near Umtata) - the first black president of South Africa from May 10, 1994 to June 14, 1999, one of the most famous activists in the fight for human rights during the apartheid period, for which he was in prison for 27 years, laureate Nobel Peace Prize 1993. In South Africa, Nelson Mandela is also known as Madiba(one of the clan names of the Xhosa people)

Mandela studied in the Witwatersrand until 1948, but for a number of reasons he never received a law degree. At the same time, it was during this period of his life that Nelson came under the strong influence of liberal, radical and Africanist ideas. In 1943, he first took part in a mass action - protests against increasing bus fares, and also began attending meetings of young intellectuals, held on the initiative of the leader of the African National Congress (ANC). Other participants in the meetings included Walter Sisulu, Oliver Tambo, Anton Lembede and Ashley Mda. In April 1944, Mandela became a member of the ANC and, together with his like-minded people, took part in the creation of the Youth League, in which he became a member of the executive committee. The manifesto of the league, which was based on the principles of African nationalism and self-determination, rejected any possibility of participation in advisory councils and in the Council of Native Representatives. In general, the league took a more militant position towards the official authorities of the country than the leadership of the ANC, whose activities were repeatedly criticized by it for its connivance.

After the 1948 election victory of the Afrikaner National Party, which supported apartheid policies, Mandela became actively involved in political life countries. In 1948 he became national secretary of the ANC Youth League, in 1949 - a member of the ANC National Council, in 1950 - national president of the ANC Youth League. In 1952, Mandela became one of the organizers of the Defiance Campaign, initiated by the ANC. At the same time, he developed the so-called “Plan M”, which provided guidance on the activities of the ANC underground in the event of a ban by the authorities. In 1955, he participated in the organization of the Congress of the People, which adopted the Freedom Charter, which set out the basic principles for building a free and democratic society in South Africa. The Freedom Charter became the main program document of the ANC and other political organizations in South Africa that fought against the apartheid regime. In 1952, Mandela and his comrade Oliver Tambo created the first law firm led by blacks Mandela and Tambo, which provided free or low-cost legal assistance to Africans.

Mahatma Gandhi had a significant influence on the views and methods of Mandela’s political struggle (in January 2007, Mandela took part in international conference in New Delhi, where the centenary of the introduction of Gandhi's ideas of non-violence to South Africa was celebrated).

On December 5, 1956, Mandela and 150 others were arrested by authorities and charged with treason. The main point of the charge was commitment to communism and preparation of a violent overthrow of power. The trial, which lasted from 1956 to 1961, resulted in the acquittal of all defendants. Between 1952 and 1959, a new group of black activists called "Africanists" broke with the African National Congress, demanding stronger action against the National Party regime and opposing cooperation with the Communist Party and political organizations of other racial groups of the South African population. The ANC leadership, represented by Albert Luthuli, Oliver Tambo and Walter Sisulu, witnessed not only the growing popularity of Africanists, but also saw them as a threat to their leadership. Subsequently, the ANC strengthened its position through cooperation with small political parties, representing the interests of the white, mixed and Indian populations, thus trying to enlist the support of a wider range of the population than Africanists. Africanists, in turn, criticized the 1955 Kliptown Conference, which adopted the Freedom Charter, for the concessions that the ANC, with its 100,000-strong membership, made to gain one vote in the Congress Union. Four general secretaries of its five member organizations were secretly members of the reconstituted South African Communist Party. In 2003, the SACP Secretary General stated that ANC Secretary General Walter Sisulu had secretly joined the SACP in 1955. Thus, all five general secretaries were members of the Communist Party. This may explain why Sisulu abandoned the dominant role of the ANC in the Alliance in favor of equality between the five parties.

In 1959, Africanists, with financial support from Ghana and political assistance from Lesotho, formed the Pan-Africanist Congress under the leadership of Robert Sobukwe and Potlako Leballo.

In 1961, Mandela led the armed wing of the ANC, of ​​which he was one of the organizers, Umkhonto we Sizwe (translated from Zulu - "spear of the nation"). As a result, he began a policy of sabotage against the government and military, which allowed guerrilla warfare in the event of its failure in the fight against the apartheid regime. In addition, Mandela managed to raise money abroad and organize non-military training for wing members.

ANC member Wolfie Kadesh explained the campaign's objectives this way: “...from 16 December 1961 we were to begin bombing symbolic apartheid sites such as passport offices, local magistrates' courts..., post offices and... government offices. But this had to be done in such a way that no one was hurt, no one was killed.”. In the future, Mandela spoke of Wolfie as follows: “His knowledge of warfare and his direct combat experience were extremely useful to me.”.

According to Mandela, armed struggle became the last resort. Years of increasing state repression and violence convinced him that the nonviolent struggle against the apartheid regime had not and could not achieve the expected results.

Later, in the 1980s, Umkhonto we Sizwe launched a large-scale guerrilla war against the apartheid government, during which many civilians were injured. According to Mandela, the ANC also grossly violated human rights in its struggle against the apartheid regime. For this, he sharply criticized those in his party who tried to remove allegations of abuses by the ANC from reports prepared by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Until July 2008, Mandela and members of the ANC were prohibited from entering the United States (except for the right to visit the UN headquarters in New York) without special permission from the US Secretary of State due to the party's designation as a terrorist organization by the former apartheid government of South Africa.

On August 5, 1962, Mandela, who had been on the run for seventeen months, was arrested by authorities and imprisoned in Johannesburg Prison. The success of the operation was largely possible thanks to the assistance of the US CIA, which provided the South African police with information about his alleged whereabouts. Three days later, in court, Mandela was charged with organizing a workers' strike in 1961 and illegally crossing the state border. On October 25, 1962, he was sentenced to five years in prison.

On July 11, 1963, South African police organized a raid on the Lilispharm farm in the Johannesburg suburb of Rivonia. The result was the arrest of several prominent ANC leaders. The detainees were charged with four counts of organizing sabotage, which carried the death penalty, as well as charges of committing crimes equivalent to treason. In addition, they were charged with developing a plan to bring foreign troops into South Africa (Mandela categorically rejected this point of accusation). Among the accusations that Mandela agreed to was collaboration with the ANC and the SACP in the use of explosives to destroy water, electricity and gas supplies in South Africa.

During his speech at trial April 20, 1964 at Supreme Court in Pretoria, Mandela outlined the main reasons for the ANC's use of violence as a tactical weapon. In his defense speech, he described how the ANC had used peaceful means to combat the apartheid regime before the Sharpeville shootings. The holding of a referendum, as a result of which South Africa was created, and the introduction of a state of emergency in the country, along with the ban on the activities of the ANC, convinced Mandela and his supporters that the only the right way fighting for one's rights are acts of sabotage. Any other activity was tantamount to unconditional surrender. In addition, Mandela stated that the developed manifesto of the armed wing “Umkhonto we Sizwe” was aimed at the failure of the National Party’s policies. A drop in interest should have helped achieve this goal foreign companies who would refuse to invest in the country's economy. At the conclusion of his speech, Mandela stated: “Throughout my life, I have devoted myself entirely to the struggle for the African population. I fought against both white supremacy and black supremacy. I revered the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all citizens live in harmony and have equal opportunities. This is the ideal for which I am ready to live and for which I strive. But if it becomes necessary, then for the sake of this ideal I am ready to die." .

All defendants, with the exception of Rusty Bernstein, were found guilty, but on June 12, 1964, their sentence was changed to life imprisonment.

In February 1990, after the last white president of South Africa, Frederik de Klerk, signed a decree legalizing the ANC and other movements against the apartheid regime, Mandela was released. This event took place, broadcast live around the world, on February 11, 1990.

Mandela and US President Bill Clinton in 1993.

On the day of his release, Mandela gave a speech to the nation. He expressed an interest in peacefully resolving differences with the country's white population, but made it clear that the ANC's armed struggle was not over when he stated: “Our resort to armed struggle in 1960, when the armed wing of the ANC, Umkhonto we Sizwe, was created, was purely a defensive step against the violence of the apartheid regime. The factors that made armed struggle necessary still exist. We have no choice but to continue what we started. We hope that a climate favorable to resolving problems through negotiations will soon be created so that there will no longer be a need for armed struggle.". In addition, Mandela stated that his main goal remains achieving peace for the country's black majority and giving them the right to vote in both national and local elections.

Shortly after his release, Mandela returned to the position of leader of the ANC, and between 1990 and 1994 the party took part in the negotiation process to end apartheid, which resulted in the holding of the first national elections on a racial basis.

In 1991, the ANC held its first national conference after the ban on its activities in South Africa was lifted. At it, Mandela was elected president of the organization. In turn, Oliver Tambo, who led the ANC in exile during Mandela's imprisonment, became national chairman.

In 1993, Mandela and de Klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Despite this, relations between politicians were often tense, especially after a sharp exchange of statements in 1991, when Mandela named de Klerk as head of the "an illegal, discredited minority regime". In June 1992, after the Boipatong massacre, negotiations initiated by the ANC were interrupted, and Mandela blamed the South African government for the killings. However, after another massacre, but this time in Bisho, which took place in September 1992, the negotiation process was resumed.

Shortly after the assassination of ANC leader Chris Hani in April 1993, fears arose of a new wave of violence in the country. After this event, Mandela appealed to the nation to remain calm. Despite the fact that several riots followed the murder, negotiations continued and, as a result, an agreement was reached, according to which democratic elections were scheduled for April 27, 1994 in the country.

In the parliamentary elections held in April 1994, the ANC received 62% of the votes. On May 10, 1994, Mandela, who led the ANC, officially took office as President of South Africa, the first black resident of the country to hold this position. National Party leader de Klerk was appointed First Deputy President and Thabo Mbeki Second Deputy in the Government of National Unity. As President of South Africa from May 1994 to June 1999, Mandela achieved international recognition for his contributions to national and international reconciliation.

During his years in office, Mandela undertook a number of important socio-economic reforms with the goal of overcoming social and economic inequalities in South Africa. Among the key measures of his presidency are:

· the introduction in 1994 of free health care for all children under six years of age, as well as for pregnant and lactating women using public health services;

· launch of the so-called “Reconstruction and Development Program”, which aimed to finance social services (such sectors as housing and communal services and healthcare);

· increase in spending on state benefits by 13% by 1996/1997, by 13% by 1997/1998, by 7% by 1998/1999;

· introducing equality in the payment of benefits (including disability benefits, parental capital and pensions) regardless of race;

· introduction of cash benefits for the maintenance of children of black residents in rural areas;

· a significant increase in spending on education (25% in 1996/1997, 7% in 1997/1998 and 4% in 1998/1999);

· the adoption of the Land Restitution Act in 1994, under which persons dispossessed by the 1913 Native Land Act had the right to claim the return of land;

· the adoption in 1996 of the Land Reform Law, which protected the rights of land tenants who lived and occupied agriculture on farms. According to this law, tenants could not be deprived of land ownership without a court decision and upon reaching 65 years of age;

· the introduction of child support grants in 1998 aimed at combating child poverty;

· the adoption in 1998 of the Law on Advanced Training, which established a mechanism for financing and implementing measures to improve professional skills at the workplace;

· the adoption in 1995 of the Labor Relations Law, which regulated issues of labor relations at enterprises, including ways to resolve labor disputes;

· adoption in 1997 of the Law on basic conditions employment aimed at protecting workers' rights;

· the passage of the Employment Equity Act in 1998, which abolished racial discrimination in employment;

· connecting more than 3 million residents to telephone networks;

· reconstruction and construction of 500 clinics;

· connecting more than 2 million residents to electrical networks;

· construction of more than 750 thousand houses, in which 3 million people settled;

· ensuring access to water for 3 million residents;

· introduction of compulsory education for African children aged 6-14 years;

· providing free meals for 3.5-5 million schoolchildren;

· the adoption of the Mine Health and Safety Act in 1996, which improved working conditions for miners;

· the launch of the National Medicines Policy in 1996, which made it easier for the population to access life-saving medicines.

Today I will talk about how traffic works in South Africa, about roads, road signs and cars using the example of Durban, one of the largest cities in South Africa.

2. Car traffic in South Africa is very developed. The length of roads in the country is more than 200 thousand kilometers (for comparison, there are about 20 thousand kilometers of railways here). The country drives on the left and the roads are mostly of excellent quality. There are a lot of cars, including all famous world brands.

3. Of course, many roads were repaired for the World Cup. That's even special signs hung up pointing to the stadium.

4. Fuel is represented by two versions of 95 gasoline (with and without metal content) and one version of diesel.

5. The wholesale price for diesel fuel is R7.79 (1 dollar ~ R7.8). At retail, gasoline and diesel fuel cost approximately the same - R8.1.

6. All road signs on the highway are installed on wooden poles. In cities, steel pipes are mainly used.

7. The country has built a huge network of toll highways.

8. They say that the fare is not too low, but it saves a lot of time. Motorways have a minimum of three lanes for traffic in each direction.

9. In some areas, trucks are prohibited from driving in the far right lane.

10. Road transport throughout the country is very developed.

11. In dangerous areas, signs are supplemented with two flashing orange lamps, which turn on at night.

12. If desired, there is always an alternative to toll roads (indicated by the letter T).

13. Nice lane direction arrows on the motorway. All signs are made from narrow horizontal strips that are glued to an iron base.

14. Now let's look at how traffic works in Durban. The city center has a square-cluster layout, mostly with one-way traffic. All technical hatches on the asphalt are marked with orange paint with an arrow indicator.

15. Those who believe in God usually inform others about their choice using stickers on the rear window of the car. Some paste the words “Report bad driving” and the police phone number.

16. Surprisingly, car tinting is not at all popular in such a hot southern country. There are even virtually no cars with factory tinted rear hemispheres. This police car seems to be the only exception, tinted to zero along with the windshield.

17. Yes, public transport is not developed at all in South Africa. That is, there are practically no large buses at all, but there are these small minibuses that are used exclusively by the black population.

18. An original way to cool a bottle using a glass suction cup.

19. There are many taxis in the city, which are represented mainly by Toyota cars from the end of the last century. Among taxi drivers, “collective farm” tuning is very common, which includes a huge number of chrome plates, cool stickers (cool cockroaches) and, most importantly, the installation of narrow tires on wide alloy wheels, simultaneously with a rear suspension lift.

20. Paid parking is implemented very simply - you park your car, pay for parking at a nearby machine and place the receipt under the windshield. The police walk around and check for receipts and, if missing, call a tow truck.

21. A sign prohibiting standing under an umbrella at the table. About other signs not related to automobile traffic in the following reports.

22. Speed ​​bumps are placed in residential areas to prevent people from driving around.

23. In general, cars are very popular in South Africa. The entire service infrastructure is very widely represented.

24. From auto parts stores to the sale of new and used cars.

25. Toyota, Mazda and BMW also have their own production facilities in South Africa. For example, there are a lot of the latter on the roads. "Kopeyka" BMWs are as common here as the Mazda 3 in Moscow. Expensive cars too much.

26. The turning section at traffic lights is represented not only by a green, but also by a red signal. This is done so that if the green lamp in the additional section burns out, drivers do not fall into a stupor. And if the operating pattern of a traffic light changes, a sign must be hung on it indicating the change in operating intervals. When a traffic light is turned off, it flashes not a yellow signal, like ours, but a red one.

27. Drainage ditches and manholes are located under the sidewalks.

28. Freight transportation is carried out on long road trains with composite trailers.

29. Often the road surface is made of concrete. In the case of repair work, temporary signs are pressed down with bags of earth to prevent them from being blown away by the wind.

30. And they always put a living person who warns that there will be a narrowing further on the road.

31. Refrigerated drinks are sold at traffic lights.

32. Or there are beggars. Moreover, it should be noted that he does not just beg, but offers his services for collecting garbage. That is, thanks to it there is significantly less garbage on the roads.

33. And in Durban there are even multi-storey parking lots in the city center.

34. In the following parts I will talk about apartheid and the life of white, black and colored people in South Africa.

More reports from a trip to South Africa with Kia Motors.

Sub-Saharan Africa gaining independence

Following the countries of the Middle East and North Africa, the national liberation movement intensified in sub-Saharan Africa.

Among the British possessions in Africa, the Gold Coast colony was the first to gain independence - in March 1957. The anti-colonial struggle there was led by Kwame Nkrumah, one of the ideologists of Pan-Africanism, the future first president of the independent Ghana.

The first French possession in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence (October 2, 1958) was Guinea. The national liberation struggle in Guinea took place under the leadership of Ahmed Sekou Toure, who would become the first president of independent Guinea.

In 1960, which went down in history as "year of Africa" 17 states immediately gained independence: the Republic of Chad, the Central African Republic, Congo (Brazzaville), Gabon, the Dahomey Republic, Niger, Upper Volta, Cote d’Ivoire, etc.

Features of the political regime of South Africa. Racism and apartheid. The struggle for the creation of a non-racial state in South Africa

Due to the fact that the richest natural resources The colonies were located in South Africa; the territories located in the south of the African continent gained independence somewhat later.

The case of South Africa is of particular interest because there was a struggle to create a non-racial state.

First manifestations racism appeared in South Africa back in the 17th century.

Racism is an ideology that uses external differences as the primary reason for denying equal treatment to members of another group based on so-called scientific, biological or moral characteristics; in which the indigenous population views members of another group as different from their own and inherently inferior. Such racist arguments are often used to justify preferential treatment of one group.

In 1685, a special decree prohibited mixed marriages between whites, Boers and Africans.

The Boers, or Afrikaners, are a migrant ethnic group, immigrants from Holland, who developed the occupied lands in South Africa and formed the Caen colony. The Boers already in the 18th century. separated from the Dutch and began to turn into an independent nation.

When the Cape Colony came under British control, the Boers reacted sharply to the British attempts to “anglicize” them: they founded the Transvaal and Orange republics, independent of the British, in which the African population was deprived of all rights, while civil rights and liberties were granted to the white population of the republics .

After the Anglo-Boer War, ideas that would later develop into a regime again gained popularity among Afrikaners. apartheid.

Apartheid was a policy of racial segregation, discrimination and oppression carried out by the South African government against indigenous African and other non-European populations until the early 1990s. The 1973 Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid classifies apartheid as a crime against humanity (Article 1).

In 1948, in the Union of South Africa (SA), the Nationalist Party won the parliamentary elections, adopting the policy of apartheid, where the main goal was the territorial division of the population into racial groups (Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, etc.), which formed the basis creation of pseudo-independent states on a mono-ethnic basis (“Bantustans”). The white minority was allocated 87% of the territory, and the Africans - 13%. A number of laws were passed to exclude Africans from high-paying positions (the Color Barrier Law), as well as a law prohibiting mixed marriages. There was “everyday apartheid” - the segregation of Africans in transport, hotels and other public places.

In 1955, the African National Congress (ANC) and a number of progressive organizations of colored and white people convened the Congress of Peoples, at which the Freedom Charter was developed - the main program document of the struggle for a democratic Africa. The South African leadership brutally suppressed the protest movement; ANA leader Nelson Mandela and his associates were sentenced to life imprisonment. Since 1961, the AK, deprived of the possibility of legal struggle, began an armed confrontation, creating for this purpose the paramilitary organization “Umkhonto we Sizwe” (“Spear of the Nation”).

In 1961, South Africa seceded from the British Commonwealth of Nations and declared itself the Republic of South Africa.

In the mid-1970s - early 1980s. South Africa granted "independence" to the first four Bantustans - Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda and Ciskei.

An important milestone in the national liberation movement in South Africa was the uprising of Africans in the Johannesburg suburb of Sueto, which spread to many cities in the country. As a result of these events, Western countries introduced serious sanctions against South Africa for the first time. The regime itself began limited transformations, such as the abolition of segregation in public places, allowing African trade unions to operate, and a new South African constitution was adopted, declaring the country a presidential republic with a three-chamber parliament - for whites, coloreds and Indians.

After the adoption of the constitution, a new wave of demonstrations swept across South Africa. Since the mid-1980s. The world community begins to put pressure on the republic, as a result of which South Africa was forced to withdraw troops from Angola. In 1988, South Africa, Angola and Cuba signed an agreement on a settlement in southwest Africa under the auspices of the United Nations, which included Namibia moving towards independence.

Thus, the crisis of the apartheid regime became obvious. In January

• 1989 President of South Africa II. Botha met with the imprisoned leader of the majority African population, N. Mandela. February 11
• In 1990, after 27 years of imprisonment, N. Mandela was released. In 1991, at the ANC congress, Mandela was elected president of the Congress.

Preparations began for the general elections in South Africa, during which there were violent clashes between political opponents.

In 1992, the ban on the activities of the ANC and other organizations was lifted, and the abolition of racist apartheid laws also began.

In April 1994, in elections in which 19 parties participated, the ANC received 65% of the vote. At a parliamentary meeting, N. Mandela was elected President of South Africa. Thus ended the period of apartheid, which can be characterized as a phenomenon of internal colonialism, when within the borders of one state the white minority exploited the dark-skinned population of the country.

- left-hand drive (steering wheel on the right).

South Africa has a well-developed and well-maintained network of roads and highways, more than 35% of which are asphalt.

Traffic rules and road signs comply with international standards, but there are a number of significant differences, so you should consult the rental office employees about them before traveling.

The speed in cities is 60 km/h, on highways - 120 km/h, on some roads - 100 km/h. It is mandatory to wear seat belts. As elsewhere, the traffic police strictly monitor drivers' compliance with the speed limit.

Latest changes: 24.02.2013

Public transport

Urban public transport in South Africa is poorly developed. Buses run rarely, and even less often on weekends. Many bus routes have a day off on Sunday. Minibus taxis are designed for blacks and pose a threat to white passengers.

Every day, many buses make intercity trips, day or night. Some also travel to Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Botswana. Intercity bus transportation is carried out by modern vehicles (with air conditioning) from Greyhound, Intercape Mainliner and Translux. Fares are usually slightly higher than when traveling the same distance by train, but buses are noticeably faster. Tickets can be purchased at bus station ticket offices (it is recommended to book tickets in advance for long-distance flights); only on some local routes does the driver accept payment. On many routes, a passenger can pre-book a trip with intermediate stops at any destination, without changing the cost of the ticket. There are special rates for long-distance travel.

Latest changes: 05.06.2010

Taxi

It is difficult to catch a taxi on the street (and it is not safe), as in the cities of Europe or America. You need to find a special parking lot, and this is very difficult. Taxis are usually called by phone.

The cars are quite comfortable and relatively new.

There are two types of taxis - regular taxis with a meter (tariffs are slightly higher, the fee for mileage is strictly fixed) and cars of private companies (there are often no meters, the price is negotiated with the driver).

Taxi services are available at all airports and train stations.

Latest changes: 05.06.2010

Aviation transport

International airports located in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.

The national company South African Airways (SAA) operates many flights connecting all major cities, as well as many capitals of the African continent. Domestic air travel is quite expensive, but the service is excellent and the flight schedule is impeccably maintained.

IN recent years Domestic traffic in South Africa has expanded noticeably due to the arrival of new airlines, some of which can be classified as “low-cost”:

FlyMango flies between the cities of Johannesburg, Cape Town, Dubran, Bloemfontein;

Kulula Air flies between Johannesburg, George, Cape Town and Durban. Plus regional international flights to Harare (Zimbabwe), Windhoek (Namibia), Lusaka (Zambia) and Mauritius;

1time Aero flies between Johannesburg, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, East London and Zanzibar (Tanzania);

Interlink Airlines(www.interlinkairlines.com), connects Johannesburg with Cape Town, Dubran; Kruger Park (Nelspruit), as well as with the neighboring countries of Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Tanzania.

Latest changes: 05.06.2010

Rail transport

South Africa has an extensive and extensive railway network connecting all major cities. The railway track in the country is narrow.

Intense commuter train traffic in the Witwatersrand, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town areas (commuter trains are used only in Cape Town) makes rail travel within the country quite convenient.

The cost of train tickets is relatively low. Standing apart are the Blue Train and Rovos Rail luxury trains running between Tshwane and Cape Town (a separate line connects the capital of South Africa with Zimbabwe), as well as the Trans-Karoo (Cape Town - Tshwane), the Tshwane - Dar express train. es-Salam and others (the cost of travel in most of them is comparable to a plane flight). It is recommended to make ticket reservations for all trains, and for luxury trains - at least 24 hours before departure.

Passenger trains are divided into several classes: Sitter coach (seats), Sleeper-4 (compartment with sleepers, 4 seats), Sleeper-6 (compartment with sleepers, 6 seats).

Latest changes: 05.06.2010

Car rental

Any driver at least 23 years old who has an international license can rent a car. driver's license. The rental price always includes insurance. Upon receipt of the car, the client must pay a deposit for a full tank of gasoline in the amount of 400 ZAR (it is returned when returning the car with a full tank).

If the car is picked up and dropped off in different cities or provinces of the country, an additional fee of ~250 ZAR is usually charged. The renter of the car is provided with maps of the country and road atlases free of charge.

Latest changes: 05.06.2010

Useful

On internal roads, animals and often children often come onto the road surface.

Some major highways and highways (marked with the letter "N") have toll fees; payment is accepted at special machines at the entrance. In some cities there are street signs located on curbs.

Remember that in Johannesburg the highways leading to Sandton, Illovo and Rosebank are very busy. Peak hours are from 7 to 8:30 and from 16:30 to 18 hours. During these hours, heavy traffic jams also occur on the highway between Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Please note that prohibitory signs on the roads are round with a blue background; signs warning of danger are triangular with a blue background bordered by a red stripe; information boards are mostly green.

The country has a widely developed network of gas stations, most of them operate 24 hours a day and have small shops and service stations. There is no self-service at gas stations. The attendant will not only fill your tank with gas, but also check the oil, tires, and wipe down the front window of your car. This will result in a tip of several rands.

Gas stations use cash only and do not accept credit cards, but there are usually ATMs available.

In some cities there are street signs located on curbs.

On-street parking in populated areas, as a rule, paid, carried out with the help of special parking workers (wear vests bright color). Large stores have paid parking lots. The duration of the vehicle's stay in such a parking lot is indicated on a special ticket. The fine for parking in an unauthorized place is quite high.

Once you get into the car and close the door, you must immediately lock it and roll up the windows. Especially in the evening, and in unsafe areas. When driving through such areas, the window in the car is not closed completely, leaving a couple of centimeters on top, but so that you cannot stick your hand in from the outside. A window that is not completely closed is more difficult to break. You can gain time and increase the gas while the attacker swings a second time.

Buy a can for quick tire repair. It is not always safe to change a tire on the road. And cases when they deliberately throw sharp objects on the road and wait are common. If you catch a bolt in the tire, move away as far as you can and quickly inflate the tire with a spray can.

You should never drive through black areas such as Soweto, Alexandra and Sebokeng near Johannesburg.

IN big cities In South Africa, black South Africans, teenagers and adults, stand in parking lots and on the side of major streets and wave to you, offering to help you find a parking space and look after your car. Their services do not guarantee the safety of your car, but it is common practice to tip them a few rands. The fact is that, given the huge scale of unemployment among the black population, these people could find much less honest ways to make money. for example, engage in robbery.