Verwoerd, Hendrik
Pronunciation: /fə(r)ˈvʊət/
- (1901–66), South African statesman, Prime Minister 1958–66; full name Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd. As Minister of Bantu Affairs (1950-8) he developed the segregation policy of apartheid. As Premier he banned the ANC and the Pan-Africanist Congress in 1960, following the Sharpeville massacre. He withdrew South Africa from the Commonwealth and declared it a republic in 1961.
