Steve Biko, an anti-apartheid activist from South Africa, was arrested on August 18, 1977, and beaten by 10 security police officers in his cell. He suffered a massive brain hemorrhage on September 6 and was assassinated on September 12 due to extensive brain damage.

　　 Steve Biko, an anti-apartheid activist from South Africa, was arrested on August 18th, 1977. He was shackled and held naked in a cell. He was beaten by ten security police officers. He suffered three brain lesions and on September 6th he suffered a massive brain hemorrhage. On September 12th 1977, Biko was assassinated in his cell due to extensive brain damage.

　　Steve Biko was a co-founder of the South African Students' Organization and a leading figure in the Black Consciousness Movement. In 1972, he co-founded the Black Convention. On September 12, 1977, he was murdered by police while in custody. In 1968, Biko co-founded the South African Students' Organization, a black-only student organization that resisted apartheid, and later became a leading figure in the newly emerging Black Consciousness Movement in South Africa . In 1969, Biko became president of the South African Students' Organization (SASO). Three years later, in 1972, he was expelled from the University of Natal for his political activities. In 1972, Biko co-founded another group of black activists, the Black People's Convention, and became its leader. The group became the central organization of the Black Consciousness Movement (BCM), and continued to gain support across the United States in the 1970s.

　Biko was arrested several times for his anti-apartheid activities, and in the late 1970s he was arrested four times and detained for several months at a time. On August 18, 1977, he was arrested and detained in Port Elizabeth, which is located at the southern tip of South Africa. The following month, on September 11, Biko was left naked and handcuffed several miles away in Pretoria, South Africa. The next day, on September 12, 1977, Biko died of a brain hemorrhage. Biko's death caused national outrage and protests, and he was regarded as an international symbol of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. In 1997, 20 years after Biko's death, five former police officers confessed to Biko's murder. The officers were found to be involved in Biko's death as a result of the investigation. They applied for amnesty from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but their application was rejected in 1999.