Mandela Conditional Release Offer
Offers Nelson Mandela release if he renounces political violence.
Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03
1985 in South Africa
Explore 17 historical events and records for South Africa in 1985.
Historical records for South Africa in 1985
Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 17 of 17 unique records.
17Unique records
1 of 1Page
16Named events on this page
4Named people on this page
3Places on this page
January
Prison Release Proposal
Mandela rejects the condition in a statement read publicly.
February
Arrest of Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela rejects Bothas offer of conditional release
Arrest of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
Nelson Mandela rejects Bothas offer of conditional release
Botha Release Offer Refused
Insists that political rights must precede meaningful personal freedom.
Rejects Conditional Release
Rejects an offer of freedom conditional on renouncing violence.
April
Reform of Racial Laws
South Africa pledges to abolish bans on mixed-race sex
July
Emergency Powers Declared
Expands detention and censorship powers amid nationwide political unrest.
Partial State of Emergency
Declares a state of emergency in selected districts.
State of Emergency
A state of emergency is declared
Ambassador Recall
France recalls its Ambassador from South Africa & suspends investment
Burial
Mass funerals for black victims are banned during a period of unrest
August
Speech
Failure to pledge reforms to the apartheid system leads to disvetment from South Africa
November
Prostate Surgery
Is admitted to hospital for prostate surgery.
Volks Hospital Admission
Returns to Pollsmoor later in November after treatment.
Other events (month unknown)
Chief of Staff
Appointed Chief of Staff of the Umkhonto we Sizwe
Reform of Racial Laws
The ban on Inter Racial Marriage is lifted
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.