"Soweto" a Johannesburg Travel Page by cosmopolit

Send Photo to a Friend

Soweto

What you see here is Soweto. It's a township setup under the apartheid regime. It made international headlines for more than one time. I don't want to tell the sad history of it as I take it as commonly known amongst responsible citizens of the world.
So this township looks very much the way you'd expect it to. Social housing style, prefabs, dormstyle bunkhouses and very simple shelters, everything there. A burnedout and smashed schoolbuilding along the way.
Note the vast expanse! Driving through is like crossing different neighbourhoods. Down at the bottom the very basic simple structures. Moving up the slope one can note the change in style, it gets fancier until....

Send Photo to a Friend

still Soweto

you finally reach the top of the hill. Hey presto, designer villas I'd call them. 1988 apparently there were seven 7 millionaires living in Soweto. Owners of supermarkets, moviehouses etc.
That took me by surprise.

Send Photo to a Friend

The complex in the highlighted area was built for Nelson Mandela by the ANC but he never moved in and stayed at his own little house until he's been arrested.
Winnie then still his wive moved in while he's been in jail. During that time the premises witnessed some very brutal crimes commited on members of the Soweto footballclub amongst others.
That's what I've been told by my guide in 1988.
If memory does not fail me. A few years ago Winnie had to appear in court regarding the tortures and murder commited in this property. About that time Nelson filed for divorce. Ever since this trip I could no longer look past news headlines about SA. I'm glad things turned in the right direction at last though there's still a very very long way to go. Just recently it hit home again when Ed Fagan was here in Zurich on Paradeplatz with a victim of that era, ranting against the banks who supported the system.
Let's hope for this wonderful country to make it into a better future.