1963 in South Africa

← 1962 1961 1960 1963 in South Africa → 1964 1965 1966
Decades:	1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s
See also:	List of years in South Africa

Incumbents

• State President: Charles Robberts Swart

Events

March

• Publications and Entertainments Act enables the government to impose strict censorship. Des Troye's novel An Act of Immorality (an attack on the miscegenation provisions of the Immorality Act) is among the first works to be prohibited under it.

July

• 2 – Cameroon closes its airports and harbours to both Portugal and South Africa.
• 11 – Lionel Bernstein, Dennis Goldberg, Arthur Goldreich, Bob Hepple, James Kantor, Ahmed Kathrada, Govan Mbeki, Raymond Mhlaba, Andrew Mlangeni, Elias Motsoaledi, Walter Sisulu and Harold Wolpe, all senior African National Congress members, are arrested at Liliesleaf Farm in Rivonia, Johannesburg.
• Neville Alexander is arrested along with a number of National Liberation Front members.

August

• 7 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 181 is passed, calling for a voluntary arms embargo of South Africa.
• 20 – The Israeli government informs the United Nations Special Committee on Apartheid that it has taken all necessary steps to ensure that no arms, ammunition, or strategic materials are exported from Israel to South Africa in any form, directly or indirectly.
• 20 – Mauritius bars South Africa and Portugal from her sea- and airports.

November

• 26 – The Rivonia Trial begins.

Unknown date

• Sewsunker "Papwa" Sewgolum, an Indian golfer, wins the Natal Open tournament.
• Dorothy Nyembe is arrested for furthering the objectives of the banned African National Congress and is sentenced to 3 years in prison.

Births

• 14 February – Ken Oosterbroek, photojournalist is born in Johannesburg
• 3 May – Justice Sfiso Mkame, artist, is born in Durban.
• 6 July – Robert McBride, political activist and convicted murderer, is born in Durban.

Deaths

• 17 September – Adolph (Sailor) Malan, World War II fighter pilot, dies from Parkinson's disease at the age of 53.

Railways

Locomotives

• The South African Railways places the first of 130 Class 5E1, Series 2 electric locomotives in mainline service. These are the first electric locomotives to be built in South Africa in quantity.