In 1951, the first banning order was imposed by the South African apartheid government. 1392 people were eventually banned under the Suppression of Communism Act 44 of 1950, which later had its name changed to the Internal Security Act 4 of 1950. The final banning order was issued in 1985. 

Banning was used to restrict the association, employment, movement, and speech of the banned people. Banning was used as one of the apartheid government’s tools to dehumanise and oppress political activists, however, the banning of people has received little attention as compared with the banning of organisations and publications. 

The South African Banned Persons Memory Project conducted interviews with 179 formerly banned people. These oral history interviews form a rich and informative archive describing life under these restrictions and the impact it had on their lives and families. It highlights their commitment to political change and resistance.  

The project was initiated and commissioned by Eric Abrahams, who funded it along with the Common Humanity Arts Trust. The archive is now housed in the Audiovisual Archive of UCT Libraries’ Special Collections, and a selection of video and audio interviews can be seen on their showcasing platform, Ibali.