In the early 80s, from international pressure, the government revoked some of the petty laws of Apartheid, and allowed a limited representation of Asians and coloureds in parliament. However, blacks were still ignored, and this caused more uprising and strikes, resulting in thousands being killed.
Politicized funerals were a means for blacks to meet and plan for riots and black-on-black violence took hold in many townships. Some blacks were so desperate for money, they began working for the white government, spying on the black political groups and selling their information. These informants, when discovered by blacks in the community, would undergo "necklacing." This was a practice where a rubber tire was forced around the victim's neck and doused with gasoline, and then set alight. Fighting was especially vicious between ANC members and members of the Zulu Inkatha Freedom Party.
The violence did not seem to be abating, and on June 12th 1986, the government proclaimed a state of emergency. This allowed police to arrest and detain thousands of South Africans, many of them black political religious leaders and labour union organisers. By the middle of February 1987 more than 13000 blacks had been arrested, many of them children younger than ten years old.
