In March 1960 , Johannesburg witnessed widespread demonstrations against '' apartheid '' in response to the Sharpeville massacre . In July 1963 , the South African Police raided a house in the Johannesburg suburb of Rivonia where nine members of the banned African National Congress ( ANC ) were arrested on charges of planning sabotage . The nine arrested included one Indo-South African , two whites and six blacks , one of whom was the future president Nelson Mandela . At their trial , the accused freely admitted that they were guilty of what they were charged with , namely of planning to blow up the hydro-electric system of Johannesburg to shut down the gold mines , but Mandela argued to the court that the ANC had tried non-violent resistance to '' apartheid '' and failed , leaving him with no other choice . The trial made Mandela into a national figure and a symbol of resistance to '' apartheid ''
Sharpeville massacre
Sharpeville massacre
Johannesburg