XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Windhoek, Namibia
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
A cycle of forced-removal planning, popular protest, and state violence surrounding Windhoek’s Old Location. Municipal plans announced from 1954 sought to move most Black residents north of the town into the new township of Katutura. Resistance culminated in women’s marches, boycotts, and unrest in December 1959, when police killed at least eleven people. The shootings radicalised opposition to South African rule, encouraged nationalist leaders including Sam Nujoma to go into exile, and contributed to the eventual demolition of the Old Location and the removal of its remaining residents by 1968.
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From 1954, Windhoek’s municipality planned to remove the Old Location, the capital’s principal Black residential area, to a new site north of town. The scheme aimed to intensify residential segregation, isolate the white population from the Black community, and release land for white housing. A separate township was also planned for the Coloured population, whose numbers had grown through immigration from South Africa after the Second World War.
Residents opposed both the move and the apartheid policy behind it. When the Location Advisory Board was asked to suggest a name for the new township, it replied, “we have no dwelling place”; the name Katutura nevertheless became attached to the planned settlement. Although officials promised improved conditions, residents faced higher rents, greater distance from central Windhoek, and the destruction of an established community.
In late 1959, two women’s marches travelled from the Old Location towards central Windhoek. Protesters objected to removal as well as to attempts to control the illicit beer trade on which many depended. The OPO and SWANU organised boycotts of buses and the Location beer hall, with women playing a prominent role; Fakkel also participated in the resistance.
On 10 December, unrest outside the beer hall became violent and police shot and killed at least eleven people. The shootings convinced many residents that South African authorities would use lethal force and that the United Nations would not quickly intervene. The crisis helped radicalise opposition, encouraged Sam Nujoma and other OPO leaders to leave for exile, and intimidated some residents into moving to Katutura, although the last residents were not forced to leave until 1968.
XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Windhoek, Namibia
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
A cycle of forced-removal planning, popular protest, and state violence surrounding Windhoek’s Old Location. Municipal plans announced from 1954 sought to move most Black residents north of the town into the new township of Katutura. Resistance culminated in women’s marches, boycotts, and unrest in December 1959, when police killed at least eleven people. The shootings radicalised opposition to South African rule, encouraged nationalist leaders including Sam Nujoma to go into exile, and contributed to the eventual demolition of the Old Location and the removal of its remaining residents by 1968.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
From 1954, Windhoek’s municipality planned to remove the Old Location, the capital’s principal Black residential area, to a new site north of town. The scheme aimed to intensify residential segregation, isolate the white population from the Black community, and release land for white housing. A separate township was also planned for the Coloured population, whose numbers had grown through immigration from South Africa after the Second World War.
Residents opposed both the move and the apartheid policy behind it. When the Location Advisory Board was asked to suggest a name for the new township, it replied, “we have no dwelling place”; the name Katutura nevertheless became attached to the planned settlement. Although officials promised improved conditions, residents faced higher rents, greater distance from central Windhoek, and the destruction of an established community.
In late 1959, two women’s marches travelled from the Old Location towards central Windhoek. Protesters objected to removal as well as to attempts to control the illicit beer trade on which many depended. The OPO and SWANU organised boycotts of buses and the Location beer hall, with women playing a prominent role; Fakkel also participated in the resistance.
On 10 December, unrest outside the beer hall became violent and police shot and killed at least eleven people. The shootings convinced many residents that South African authorities would use lethal force and that the United Nations would not quickly intervene. The crisis helped radicalise opposition, encouraged Sam Nujoma and other OPO leaders to leave for exile, and intimidated some residents into moving to Katutura, although the last residents were not forced to leave until 1968.