a-part-heid

[uh-pahrt-heyt, -hahyt]
–noun
1. (in the Republic of South Africa) a rigid policy of segregation of the nonwhite population.
2. any system or practice that separates people according to race, caste, etc.
Origin: 1945–50; < Afrik, equiv. to apart apart + -heid -hood
Dictionary.com Unabridged

Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.

(ə-pärt'hīt', -hāt')
n.
1.An official policy of racial segregation formerly practiced in the Republic of South Africa, involving political, legal, and economic discrimination against nonwhites.
2.A policy or practice of separating or segregating groups.
3.The condition of being separated from others; segregation.
[Afrikaans : Dutch apart, separate (from French à part, apart; see apart) + Dutch -heid, -hood.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.

I always thought this form of government necessarily meant a majority is being ruled by a minority?