The African National Congress was an anti-apartheid political party based in South Africa, with close ideological ties to the Zambian African National Congress of President Kenneth Kaunda. When the political party was banned in South Africa by the colonial government, many of its leaders went underground or fled to Zambia. Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, became the new headquarters for many ANC leaders in exile from their native South Africa. Zambia thus developed a legacy of being the center of activity for South African liberation and allowed exiled leaders to convene and organize. Former South African President Nelson Mandela had expressed the important role that Zambia played in the liberation of their country during the years of exile. Zambia's policy of liberation through diplomacy and discreet support for African nationalist movements within the region is most poignant in the South African case.