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Gauteng - Soweto |  |
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Gauteng Province; south-west of Johannesburg's central area. The name of South Africa's most famous high-density area is an acronym derived from South Western Townships - which is descriptive enough in terms of both geography and character. It lies to the south-west of central Johannesburg, and it's not so much a single development as a massive conglomerate of what were once 26 separate 'Bantu area' shanty towns occupied largely by 'temporary' mineworkers and migrant labourers. These were consolidated in the later 1940s, a period of rapid industrialisation, in what was essentially a slum clearance programme; serviced sites were provided; and residents were encouraged to erect temporary shelters until the Chamber of Mines and Ernest Oppenheimer's giant Anglo American Corporation made funds available, after which the place began to expand rapidly. The most dramatic event in Soweto's story was undoubtedly the student's uprising of 1976, when youngsters took to the streets en masse in protest against the use of Afrikaans as a teaching medium in their high schools. The riots sparked unrest in other centres, the outbreaks occurring sporadically over the next eight months. There was much damage, especially to government property, and many lives were lost, but the rebellion was a wake-up call to the authorities, and it stands as a landmark on the long, often painful road to full democracy. Today Soweto is home to around three million people (the exact population figure is uncertain), a vast (95-square kilometres), rather monotonous sprawl of dusty streets and modest houses. There are no high-rises, and few of the glittering shopping malls that enliven Johannesburg's more historically advantaged areas. For decades before the mid-1990s the developers and the big retail chains more or less ignored the township, simply because the apartheid laws forbade them entry. Now, however, they have begun to move in, though commercial activity continues to be dominated by the 3,000 or so 'spaza' shops (tiny home-based stores) and by the myriad small enterprises within the so-called 'informal economy'. And the landscape is changing as a prosperous middle class - comprising entrepreneurs, highly qualified professionals and executives - grows and substantial, attractive houses are built, most notably in the Orlando West and Dube areas. Much of Soweto has been electrified; more and more roads are being properly surfaced, and new schools, clinics, hospitals and community centres have made their appearance. The Chris Hani-Baragwanath hospital, in the Diepkloof area, is one of the biggest and busiest in the southern hemisphere. The local campus of Vista University provides tertiary education. Social life tends to revolve around the football arenas, the taverns and shebeens (social drinking and conversation venues), in the more upmarket clubs, and in the new community halls and recreation centres. Tours Visitors are advised not to explore Soweto unaccompanied. There are, however, conducted excursions which take in the housing developments, schools, workshops, the Sangoma (traditional healing) centre, a 'cultural kraal', shebeens and private homes. Best known of the tour operators is Jimmy's Face-to-Face Tours. Special venues en route include: African Institute of Art and the FUNDA learning centre, which seeks to promote social upliftment through cultural activities and the arts. Ekhaya Soweto Neighbourhood Museum Local arts and crafts on display, many made from recycled materials; the exhibits change as the centre undergoes continuous renewal. Soccer provides the focus of the centre's social club. Hector Petersen Square Named after the first of the students to be killed in 1976 rebellion, a moment movingly captured by the camera. There's a monument to Petersen and his fellow martyrs in the square. Nelson Mandela's House The modest bungalow where Mandela and his wife Winnie lived in the 1950s and early 1960s, before he went to prison and she into exile in the Free State. Mandela returned to the place after his release in 1990 but it proved too small for permanent residence; ex-wife Winnie later transformed it into a museum. It's in Vilakazi Street, where Nobel Laureate Desmond Tutu also had a home. Regina Mundi Church Soweto's largest Roman Catholic place of worship; more notable perhaps for its place in history (it served as a gathering place during the years of struggle) than its architecture. It also houses an art gallery. Soweto is part of the wider Johannesburg metropolitan area. |
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SOWETO Western Cape
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