Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03

1980 in South Africa

Explore 4 historical events and records for South Africa in 1980.

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Historical records for South Africa in 1980

Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 4 of 4 unique records.

4Unique records

1 of 1Page

4Named events on this page

2Named people on this page

1Places on this page

October

7 October 1980

Defence Ministry Tenure

Botha, Pieter Willem · Pretoria · Prime Minister of South Africa · Government / Government of South Africa

Remains prime minister while Magnus Malan becomes defence minister.

7 October 1980

Defence Portfolio Relinquished

Botha, Pieter Willem · Pretoria · Prime Minister of South Africa · Government / Government of South Africa

Relinquishes the defence portfolio after fourteen years.

Other events (month unknown)

1980

Independence of South Africa

Botha, Pieter · President of South Africa · Government / Government of South Africa

The independent regime under Mugabe is hostile to South Africa. South Africa is surrounded by Marxist states

1980

Reform of Labour Law

Botha, Pieter · President of South Africa · Government / Government of South Africa

Blacks are allowed to join official trade unions

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How these records were prepared

Generated from the World History Database historical_events table. Identical display records are collapsed; descriptions otherwise retain the stored text. Coverage and source quality vary. Check primary and specialist sources before citing individual historical claims.