"They tell us 400.000 people live here. But we don't believe it. Because if you drive through this place it feels like as if there is a million. And the place is getting bigger.
We know that we are the second largest township in South-Africa, Soweto is first, but still not much has been said about us. But with the arrival of the big shopping mall we are up-grading now. "
Mdantsane was established in 1962 under the framework of the Apartheid Regime and it's purpose was to provide living space for cheap African labor coming from East London but also from rural areas.
The first inhabitants that were living in Mdantsane were residents that had been removed by force from an area in East London called the East Bank.
According to old documents several hundred low cost houses were built on the outskirts of the Eastern Suburbs of East London at that time to accommodate them.
In the years from 1964 to 1970 further forced resettlements took place and thousands of families became inhabitants of Mdantsane that was growing rapidly into a big township developing it's own character and life style.
The Department of Bantu Education and Development under the Apartheid Regime saw Mdantsane as a sort of labor reserve for the labor needs of East London.
It remained an isolated artificial construction during the Apartheid time that never integrated into the white urban areas.
In 2008 the Mdantsane City Mall one of the biggest malls in the Eastern Cape has opened it's door and has changes the face of the town. A great step was made assissting Mdantsane to become a self -contained suburb with its own entertainment facilities and amenities.
No comments:
Post a Comment