I was simply curious and wanted to see how the real life for the majority of South African citizens look like, I was hoping to understand the country, culture, and history that way. Alexa, Hi Kami But though they’re often painted with a brighter palette, many of the new houses are even smaller than those built during apartheid, and located on smaller lots. Next: Car wash that took over a section of the unused Philippi plaza, taking advantage of a water tap. I’ve heard the name “township” before but all the reading I’ve done couldn’t have properly prepared me to what I was about to experience. I grew up in South Africa and recently returned to visit. I just knew I have to visit at least one township during my South African trip, to try to learn about life in these conditions. Until the early 1990s, when South Africa became an inclusive democracy, nonwhite workers were forced to live outside cities in residential areas known as townships. Even if we didn’t have a lot of kids were happy and had a good childhood. Illegal bars, or shebeens, were run out of matchbox houses, providing a much-needed social (and, often, political) venue. The past decade has seen more ambitious public space projects. The small spaces served multiple roles — as weekly markets, informal car washes and shoeshine corners — but with no historical tradition of public space in South Africa, they were rarely used for civic gatherings of any sort. I always use and trust the following websites: Money – My number one tip for everyone is to start using Revolut bank card to save money when traveling. I had no idea what to expect from South Africa, I only knew basics, and so I was curiously looking out of the window, trying to spot as many details as possible. Residents can, over time and as funds allow, add rooms and floors, or even a small building in the back to rent out. Below you have a small review of my time there. Many early post-apartheid projects were small plazas built in prominent locations, like the entry plaza at the main road into the Philippi township near Cape Town. It was distressing to see the new housing projects rising in remote fields without any sign of commercial or public spaces. That would mean so much to me! They constitute a distinct urban typology that must be addressed by practitioners, policymakers and scholars if we are to transform the spatial legacy of apartheid into a landscape that better reflects the multiracial aspirations of the nation. A township is the land formally allocated to hosting the site of a town; the word township legally refers to both residential and industrial sites. Currently in… [Photo by Robert Cutts]. Cape Town, city and seaport, legislative capitol of South Africa and capitol of Western Cape province. The former NYC Design and Construction Commissioner reflects on the legacy of the Bloomberg years, and the need for cities to take the lead in planning for climate change. Townships are considered a specifically South African ‘invention’ but they were inspired by colonial town planning and can be found in many African cities, such as Nairobi, Lusaka, cities in the Democratic Republic of Congo and even in Zanzibar. [Photo by Darren Alexander] Bottom: Baragwanath (Bara) Taxi Rank, Soweto, a multimodal transit center designed by Ludwig Hansen. Townships are not places to go sightseeing or people watching. 10 Yet, with 50 percent of the population living below the poverty line, implementation has not kept pace with need. Vibrant multiracial settlements were cleared and razed, their residents separated by race and relocated into distant townships. In the 1950s a group of architects at the prestigious University of Witswatersrand in Johannesburg proposed to solve the “native housing problem” by designing a series of matchbox houses whose sterile forms became ubiquitous across the sprawling township landscapes. Cape Town is a city that takes its food seriously. The plane cut through the last part of clouds and after a long journey, I could finally see the first glimpse of South Africa. history of the evolution of Townships since 1900 and the lessons that can be learnt for the future. Then in 2007 I worked in Johannesburg and after I saw the Township I saw the similarities to the slums in Mexico. The physical gaps between the former white city and the former black townships remain all too evident, and the spatial inequities of apartheid endure. It is difficult to assess the value of all this commercial activity, but one clear benefit is increased employment in a country where the unemployment rate among blacks is nearly 29 percent 6 and where most jobs, until recently, were far from home. After the first significant attack in the Alexandra township, in spring 2008, violence quickly spread to other provinces. Apartheid is often construed as a largely political construct, but architecture and planning were critical to implementing apartheid policies. And that’s what I saw in these townships too, happy kids who might have a bright future ahead! Market near Baragwanath Hospital, Soweto, in 2007, prior to the construction of an improved bus and taxi facility. Thoroughly enjoyed this walk through the townships of South Africa. Township residents who work in local businesses, museums and malls do not have to spend hours and rands commuting; and locally owned businesses keep money in the township, where it spurs prosperity. Soweto itself is not a unitary place but an abbreviation for South Western Townships, a collection of over 25 townships bordering Johannesburg’s mining belt to the south, which range from middle-class enclaves to informal settlements (sometimes known as shantytowns). I adore discovering off the beaten path places (especially in Central Europe) and exploring alternative spots, street art scene and local cafe culture. Read more at placesjournal.org. In South Africa, the terms township and location usually refer to the often underdeveloped racially segregated urban areas that, from the late 19th century until the end of apartheid, were Townships were usually built on the periphery of towns and cities. 3 As white-only areas have opened to other races, the biggest post-apartheid population shift has been the movement of black middle-class residents from townships to formerly all-white suburbs, enabled in part by growth in the black middle-class. Activists and NGOs have complained that the government shifted money away from poverty alleviation projects to high profile showpieces that would, they argued, provide little benefit to the country as a whole. And I did. Particularly, the highlight on localized commerce and entrepreneurship. Introduction 31 So you can think of it as contributing to South African students’ education. Insurance – I never travel without the insurance as you never know what might happen on the road and better safe than sorry (I’ve learnt my lesson). ___ History of South Africa (Part 2: The Republic of South Africa :: 1961–present) The Republic of South Africa (1961–present). I really can’t explain why such difficult issues interest me so much, especially that they stay in my mind for a long time, haunting me big time. In which case spontaneity will take over and these spaces could become as vibrant and interesting as some of the old South African townships from the apartheid era. Everything is super easy and fast, you only need an internet connection to manage your accounts in the app. Townships are … Across the country, new and rehabilitated museums, monuments and leisure accommodations have transformed the townships into cultural destinations. as flexible as possible except for the absolute necessity for fire-safety. [Photo by Urban Solutions]. Townships, settlements created by the government to segregate black South Africans from whites, are one of the most visible and lasting scars of the apartheid system. There are numerous tours you can join to get a township experience and I definitely suggest doing it when you visit South Africa. Areas where people suddenly had to live in were underdeveloped, lacking the basic facilities like running water or electricity. Beginning in the early 1960s, many of the country’s architects resisted participating in these activities, and some joined a boycott of all work for the apartheid government. Still, the salaries in Soweto are around 6 times smaller than in other areas of Johannesburg and the poverty is widely seen around. Children in a township near Cape Town. Thank you for sharing your experiences of our country. And so after a small change of plans I also got to visit township in Cape Town and Soweto. Only with the tour, you can get a full background story that will help you to understand the place. I most often use Get Your Guide that offers a variety of tours all over the world. Thanks. I'm Kami, a solo female frugal traveler from Poland! Under the provisions of the act, the Union became an independent Dominion of the British Empire, governed under a form of constitution… General definition of the word township. Post-apartheid development policies led to the construction of townships filled with government housing and limited access to some social services. Many stay for the strong communities and fledgling economic opportunities the townships provide; others cannot afford to leave. Top: Entry plaza, Philippi township, near Cape Town. They have history and heritage, family legacies and loving communities. After apartheid, spacial segregation remains. Schools were poorly maintained barrack-like structures with barred windows and secondhand desks. See, Federal Research Division of the U.S. Library of Congress, “, U.S. Department of State, Bureau of African Affairs, “. The tour was small, there were only 8 of us, and it was run by the local citizen of the township – Ella. Cape Town Townships. Designed as mediating points between formal and informal activity, hybrid public transport and shopping centers such as the Baragwanath Taxi and Bus Facility, in Soweto, provide for transport, trade and social interaction. If you don't want to miss new posts please submit your email in the field below, Copyright 2021 - Kami and the Rest of the World / Privacy Policy. I believe that opportunities with continue to develop with their evolution, and they will eventually be able to shed any negative connotations that linger from Apartheid. I had the impression that even if people don’t have a very easy life they’re still pretty happy and don’t complain a lot. As townships evolve, residents are confronting the spatial legacy of the past, negotiating the socioeconomic and political challenges and opportunities of the present and slowly building a vision for the future. Probably the most known township in South Africa is actually the group of these, located in the south-west of Johannesburg (hence the name, Soweto = South Western Townships). Sam Nzima’s photograph of the Soweto uprising, Hector Pieterson Memorial. I have just returned from my first visit to SA – 2 fantastic weeks – like you we ( my sister and me ) flew into Johannesburgh- then flew to Durban where we stayed in Seaview (with facebook friends we had never met ! ) DukeEngage Cape Town affords students an opportunity to better understand this history and the many efforts to reshape South African society after almost 350 years of settler colonialism. The rape incidence in South Africa is among the world’s highest, carjacking and burglary are common, and recently there has been an increase in xenophobic attacks toward immigrants from other African countries. The only couple of streets had real houses – and “street” is also a too big name for the lane with no asphalt and water running through it. I put international travels on hold, this is not the good time for traveling far. The need for long-promised urban reform is urgent The recent record of public space is equally mixed. And yet, even in this strictly controlled environment, informal spaces and activities emerged and flourished — sometimes as a matter of survival, other times as a political act. The townships have the potential to rise as thriving communities, culturally and economically. Hi Kami The city lies at the northern end of the Cape Peninsula. Colonial planning intended to deliberately Click here to see the overview of township tours in South Africa. Bottom: Private minibuses known as black taxis, which provided transport in the townships under apartheid and continue to thrive today. You can see them all in the Destinations page. Unemployment reaches 70%, 50% among youth but there’re a lot of local initiatives to revitalize the area and make people more active. 13 The design incorporates trading stalls and a pedestrian bridge to facilitate movement between transit lines, the hospital, trading areas and the street. M-BIC: Manufacturing Incubation Centers. But shortly after I’ve spotted some destroyed neighborhoods, people living in collapsing containers. I’ve included a few handy links of services and products I personally like and use so you can plan your own trip to South Africa too. 11. In the following decades, during which South Africa became an independent republic, a series of pass and influx laws comprehensively restricted the rights of the nonwhite population. Getting to work often involved a long and expensive commute to a job that could be three hours away. But also when I was looking at kids running around, playing together on the streets with barely any toys I could see similarities to my childhood. Residents make their own public space in New Brighton. People say “when Soweto sneeze whole South Africa catches the flu” and that’s very accurate as a lot of main events in the recent history started in Soweto. Click here to get the insurance policy for South Africa here. Of the approximate 6 500 people in this township 80% live below the poverty data line. If you don't want to miss new posts sign up to my newsletter or follow on Bloglovin! Click here to see the overview of township tours in South Africa. Townships were created in the late 19th century but the peak of its “popularity” came in the apartheid times, a dark page in the South Africa history, when “non-white” people were forced to leave their houses and move to special places, designated only for certain race groups (black people, coloreds and Indians). The very first thing I’ve noticed were beautiful blooming blue jacaranda trees – I’ve seen them for the very first time ever and just loved them! Please sent me your Email so that I can sent you a copy. The first British Settlers, known as the 1820 Settlers, arrived in Algoa Bay (n… It is our duty therefore to reduce these points of contact to the absolute minimum which public opinion is prepared to accept.”, FutureFact 2007 Report, quoted in Lauren Shapiro, “, One study found that in just 15 months, from late 2005 to early 2007, the black middle-class population grew from 2 million to 2.6 million adults, while the percentage living in the suburbs rose from 24 to 47 percent. Middle left: The vast plaza entry at Walter Sisulu Square, Kliptown, Soweto, nearly empty on a sunny weekend. Everything but electricity is for free, the same goes for the schools, hospitals and other social services. I didn’t actually plan to visit a Cape Town township but I couldn’t miss such an opportunity since Imizamo Yethu was on the route of the hop-on-hop-off bus (the only way to get to the interesting places in the city, there’s hardly any public transport! The winner, Johannesburg-based architect Pierre Swanepoel and his practice, StudioMAS, created a vast public square featuring, at its edges, a hotel and conference center, a large open-air market, food vendors and office space, as well as community meeting space and other needs. Early separation was formalized and reinforced by colonial laws such as the Natives’ Land Act of 1913, which reserved nearly 90 percent of the land in South Africa for a tiny minority white population. Named after the great anti-apartheid activist and close friend of Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu Square is slowly settling into the community, as residents figure out how to use the huge space for trade and tourism. I also value them for a really good customer service that I had to use a few times. Even if I visited Imizamo Yethu in the middle of the weekday there were a lot of kids running around and playing on the streets. In the first 6 months I’ve used Revolut card in 12 countries in 3 continents and had no issues at all. But still, even with the significant shifts of the past 15 years, residents in places like Soweto make 74 percent of their retail purchases outside the township; and of those who are employed, 70 percent work outside. With over 15 years of independent traveling, I’ve learned which websites and services are the best when planning a trip. The unemployment is really big, reaching 50% but even if someone becomes successful the person still lives in the township, the community bonds are really strong there! Instead of using its robust housing program to heal the spatial wound between cities and townships and develop mixed-use neighborhoods on the in-between belts of land, the government encourages and maintains discrete industrial facilities, factories, workshops and the occasional shopping complex. My initial plan was just to see the township in Knysna as the local tour offered there was supposed to be the best one in the whole country. The first European settlement in southern Africa was established by the Dutch East India Company in Table Bay (Cape Town) in 1652. Communal tap (standpost) for drinking water in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa (2941729790).jpg 2,272 × 1,704; 1.36 MB Check the best deals on accommodation in South Africa here! The South African city is World Design Capital, yet residents of its Khayelitsha township live in appallingly cramped, unhygienic conditions. The government has also used infrastructure projects to correct the apartheid legacy of inadequate transportation, housing and services in the townships. Having lived in Joburg as a teen ('96 ~ '99) I can attest to the overwhelming optimism at that time, only 2 years after apartheid ended. Comments are closed. It is also disturbing that the new government-built houses are often indistinguishable from the bare-bones houses of the apartheid era. I can recommend World Nomads that offer the insurance dedicated to travelers just like you and me. A lot of houses were old, wooden structures, with no electricity or running water. Top: Township located on a barren tract outside Johannesburg. Top: New BRT station and roadway in Soweto. Click here to check all the best tours you can take during your travels! The communities are supported by the numerous volunteers to be more active, they develop slowly and despite the difficult life people seem to be happy there. Behind the informal shacks in the foreground are newly built houses, and behind them are two-story barrack buildings from the apartheid era. The area now known as Soweto was settled by blacks and other nonwhites who were relocated after an outbreak of bubonic plague in central Johannesburg. And the inadequate supply of official housing was supplemented by informal settlements located either on the periphery of the sprawling townships or integrated within their boundaries as shacks on subdivided lots — solutions that today remain an integral part of the landscape. I even changed my plans to include the place in my South African itinerary and I don’t regret this decision at all. There were a lot of local businesses (everyone could hire a container and start one, the rent was around 600 rd = 55$ = 40€) and the unemployment rate was pretty low, around 20%. T T he Houses of Parliament is also the place where, in 1966, the crafter of apartheid, South African prime minister Dr Hendrik Verwoerd, was stabbed to death by parliamentary messenger Dimitri Tsafendas. Although South Africa’s apartheid system ended in 1994, the effects of its segregationist policies against non-white citizens can still be seen today. Cities were designated “for whites only,” and townships became, in effect, the mechanism for housing the nonwhite labor force. Design practices became cultural extensions of state power, and some professional designers validated the power of the white minority through the design of monumental structures such as the Union Buildings and Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria, and through the planning of new townships mandated under laws such as the Group Areas Act (1950), which specified where racial groups were allowed to live in urban areas. Duration: 02:18 The development of Alexandra Township dates back to 1912. 12 Soweto in particular has been changed by the landmark Soccer City Stadium, designed by Boogertaman + Partners, on its outskirts, and the new bus rapid transit line, by Ikemeleng and Osmond Lange, from Dobsonville township to central Johannesburg. It was a truly magical place thanks to the spirit of the people. “Soweto” became the symbol of the profound social, cultural, economic and physical divisions of apartheid. Soon there’ll be a new hotel opened in Soweto, in the neighborhood of the Soweto towers – two factory chimneys that are probably the best-known landmark in the townships. But despite such activity, post-apartheid officials have not been nearly as aggressive as earlier governments were in using planning and architecture to achieve their goals. The image of the dying boy spread around the world, and today the uprising is widely seen as a turning point in the struggle against the nationalist government. Since 1994, infrastructure has been developed through initiatives like the Reconstruction and Development Programme, a national blueprint for improving government services and basic living conditions for the poorest citizens, who number at least 17 million. What was once a racial divide has now become a class divide — although, of course, the two are linked in South Africa by racism and limits on education and social mobility. I visited the township with the highly-rated Emzini Tours and even if the tour was short, it was a really good one (I was a little reluctant after the tour to Lesotho but what bothered me there didn’t happen here at all). It was the only Place where black people could … To understand why these demographic trends are significant, look at Soweto. A Township 13 kilometeres from North-East Johannesburg. Market near Baragwanath Hospital, Soweto, in 2007, prior to the construction of an improved bus and taxi facility. In Afrikaans this is usually translated as woonbuurt.. They are often affiliate links. Johannesburg tour companies like Imbizo offer shebeen crawls. If you don’t want to miss new posts and news from me, Join my Facebook group about Eastern Europe, the Balkans and former USSR and connect with fellow travellers and enthusiasts of these regions –. [Photo by Lisa Findley]. Click here to download it to your phone before your next trip! Under apartheid, the townships were highly controlled bedroom communities, often located at some distance from the “white city.” 2 While in a few cases, like Alexandra, older townships were close to white enclaves and separated only by walls and fences, in most places a vast zone of uninhabited land separated the townships from the city. Each township I visited in South Africa was similar yet different from each other. Foreigners have become a convenient target for some members of the black working class, with tensions exacerbated by high unemployment, particularly among the young and semiskilled, and by dissatisfaction with the slow rate of progress nearly two decades after Mandela became the nation’s first post-apartheid president. Townships. Soweto is an urban settlement or 'township' in South Africa, southwest of Johannesburg, with a population of approximately 1.3 million (2008, Joburg archive). Informal minibus taxi drivers fear that the BRT system will undercut their livelihood. *Little aside: We called the black taxis "kombis.". Apparently, everyone who wanted to work had a job there. The ruling ANC party has apparently decided that replicating the old housing strategy of building bedroom communities is an effective way to make homes, neighborhoods and towns. This led to overcrowding, poor living conditio… In the period during and following World War II urban areas of South Africa experienced a rapid period of urbanisation as the colour barwas relaxed due to the war. Whole families were packed in tiny houses made of containers. But this just made me more curious and more interested in the issue. Dorp Street, Stellenbosch. Welcome to the age of Dashboard Governance. 5 Even as economic growth remains unpredictable, the people of the Soweto townships are pushing to transform these marginalized settlements into important hubs of commerce, political power and diverse social agendas. Private minibuses, more commonly known as “black taxis,” filled the service gap between the need for urban transport and the capacity of the state system. And global consumer culture is making an appearance in places like the huge air-conditioned Jubalani Mall, where Soweto residents can buy almost anything available in South Africa — from the latest fashions to fast food — from franchises of national and international chains. The townships in South Africa were designed as fortresses of apartheid control, a malicious and deliberate use of urban planning to alienate communities. (Post-apartheid, they’ve been legalized and are still the backbone of the transportation system for most townships.) Day tours – I do go for a day trips when I travel as often they are the most convenient way to see the place that saves you time and money. It may feel like townships are selling each other but I more see it as a way to raise the awareness of the poor living condition and the reality of the difficult life in Africa that eventually can lead to improving these. Kate Philip. 7. Public scholarship on architecture, landscape, and urbanism. Racially motivated land tenure policies were officially repealed in 1994, following the democratic election that brought the African National Congress party to power, but there persists a class barrier that follows the old racial lines. Many of these are doomed to become slums or to remain dreary lost spaces, but the entrepreneurial spirit of South Africans may yet save some of these areas, but it will take time. In South Africa, the terms town­ship and lo­ca­tion usu­ally refer to the often un­der­de­vel­oped racially seg­re­gated urban areas that, from the late 19th cen­tury until the end of apartheid, were re­served for non-whites, namely In­di­ans, Africans and Coloureds. Spaza shops, also run out of homes, served as small-scale convenience stores integrated into the township landscape. Cape Town Townships generally refer to the impoverished areas of the Mother City which came to existence as a result of the discriminatory apartheid rules. People don’t have an easy life there but with its increasing slowly. It occupies only 10 percent of the land of metropolitan Johannesburg but contains 40 percent of its population. Although the unrest was eventually quelled, outbreaks still occur occasionally. I am curious what types of zoning parameters exist in the new housing projects, and I hope that these are kept to the minimum - i.e. Thanks for this good article. Attractions like the Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum in the Orlando West township (Soweto), Mahatma Gandhi’s printing press and home in the Inanda township (Durban), and the Red Location Museum in New Brighton township (Port Elizabeth) appeal to both South African and foreign tourists. In fact, in some places, the townships are actually beginning to resemble towns. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Township and Robben Island Combination Tour, Cape Town Townships and Langa Gospel Tour, Half-Day Tour Through Cape Town’s Townships, Johannesburg and Soweto Apartheid Full Day Tour, Jo’berg in 1 Day: Soweto, Apartheid Museum & City Tour, Johannesburg: Small Group Soweto Bike Tour w/ a Local. Click here to learn more about the service and order your own Revolut card! These acts of responsive urbanism underscored the substandard living conditions for nonwhite peoples; sometimes they also gave the townships a physical and cultural vitality absent from the more sanitized city centers. And don't underestimate those taxis! During the years immediately following the Anglo-Boer wars, Britain set about unifying the four colonies including the former Boer republics into a single self-governed country called the Union of South Africa. While the government has built more than a million new housing units, a majority are on marginal lands at the edges of townships, exacerbating the challenge of access to jobs, transportation, education and commercial goods.
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