The end of apartheid (1990–1994)

President F.W. de Klerk, who took office in 1989, made the historic decision to negotiate. In February 1990, de Klerk unbanned the ANC. On February 11, 1990, Mandela walked out of prison after 27 years. Four years of negotiations produced a new constitution. Mandela and de Klerk shared the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize. In April 1994, the first non-racial elections were held. Mandela became the first Black president of South Africa.