De Klerk unbans the ANC and promises Mandela's release

Opening Parliament on 2 February 1990, F. W. de Klerk announced that the bans on the ANC, the PAC and the South African Communist Party were lifted, that some state-of-emergency measures would end and that executions were suspended. He said the government had taken a firm decision to release Nelson Mandela unconditionally, without yet saying when. The speech went further than most observers had expected. The release date, 11 February, was announced eight days later, on 10 February.