Biesiesvlei

Last updated

Biesiesvlei
South Africa North West location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Biesiesvlei
South Africa adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Biesiesvlei
Coordinates: 26°22′59″S25°54′00″E / 26.383°S 25.9°E / -26.383; 25.9
Country South Africa
Province North West
District Ngaka Modiri Molema
Municipality Ditsobotla
Area
[1]
  Total3.53 km2 (1.36 sq mi)
Population
 (2011) [1]
  Total116
  Density33/km2 (85/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
[1]
   Black African 29.3%
   Coloured 0.9%
   Indian/Asian 9.5%
   White 54.3%
  Other6.0%
First languages (2011)
[1]
   Afrikaans 59.5%
   Tswana 19.8%
   English 6.0%
   Sotho 6.0%
  Other8.6%
Time zone UTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)
2755
PO box
2755
Area code 018

Biesiesvlei is a settlement in Ditsobotla Local Municipality in the North West province of South Africa.

The village was in the news in June 2014, when eleven infants died there from drinking contaminated water. Street protests and lawsuits resulted. [2]

On 2 August 2023, Dr. Carel Nel was murdered at his farmstead in Biesiesvlei. Some attributed his murder to the singing of the anthem "Kill the Boer" by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), which was reported on the online website, The South African. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People Against Gangsterism and Drugs</span> Violent South African vigilante group

People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD) is a group formed in 1996 in the Cape Flats area of Cape Town, South Africa. The organisation came to prominence for acts of vigilante violence against gangsters, including arson and murder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Boer War</span> Military conflict in present-day South Africa (1880–1881)

The First Boer War, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881 between the United Kingdom and Boers of the Transvaal. The war resulted in a Boer victory and eventual independence of the South African Republic. The war is also known as the First Anglo–Boer War, the Transvaal War or the Transvaal Rebellion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boer republics</span> Former countries in southern Africa

The Boer republics were independent, self-governing republics formed by Dutch-speaking inhabitants of the Cape Colony and their descendants. The founders – variously named Trekboers, Boers and Voortrekkers – settled mainly in the middle, northern, north-eastern and eastern parts of present-day South Africa. Two of the Boer Republics achieved international recognition and complete independence: the South African Republic and the Orange Free State. The republics did not provide for the separation of church and state, initially allowing only the Dutch Reformed Church, and later also other Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition. The republics came to an end after the Second Boer War of 1899–1902, which resulted in British annexation and later incorporation of their lands into the Union of South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging</span> South African White Nationalist Paramilitary Group

The Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging, meaning "Afrikaner Resistance Movement", commonly known by its abbreviation AWB, is an Afrikaner nationalist, neo-Nazi, and white supremacist political party in South Africa. Since its founding in 1973 by Eugène Terre'Blanche and six other far-right Afrikaners, it has been dedicated to secessionist Afrikaner nationalism and the creation of an independent Boer-Afrikaner republic or "Volkstaat/Boerestaat" in part of South Africa. During bilateral negotiations to end apartheid in the early 1990s, the organisation terrorised and killed black South Africans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eugène Terre'Blanche</span> Afrikaner nationalist (1941–2010)

Eugène Ney Terre'Blanche was an Afrikaner nationalist who founded and led the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging. Prior to founding the AWB, Terre'Blanche served as a South African Police officer, was a farmer, and was an unsuccessful Herstigte Nasionale Party candidate for local office in the Transvaal. He was a major figure in the right-wing backlash against the collapse of apartheid. His beliefs and philosophy have continued to be influential amongst white supremacists in South Africa and across the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kroonstad</span> Place in Free State, South Africa

Kroonstad, officially named Maokeng, is the third largest city in the Free State and lies two hours' drive on the N1 from Gauteng. It is the second-largest commercial and urban centre in the Northern Free State, and an important railway junction on the main line from Cape Town to Johannesburg. Maokeng is Sesotho and means "place of the thorn trees ".

Lichtenburg is a town situated in North West Province, South Africa. It is the administrative centre of Ditsobotla Local Municipality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South African farm attacks</span> Attacks against farms in South Africa

South African farm attacks are violent crimes, including murder, assault and robbery, that take place on farms in South Africa. The attacks target farmers, who are usually white, and farm workers, who are usually black. Black farmers have also been victims of violent attacks. The term has no formal legal definition, but such attacks have been the subject of discussion by media and public figures in South Africa and abroad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volkstaat</span> Proposed state for Afrikaners of South Africa

The concept of a Volkstaat, also called a Boerestaat, is a proposed view to establish an all-White Afrikaner homeland within the borders of South Africa, most commonly proposed as a fully independent Boer/Afrikaner nation. The concept excludes Afrikaans-speaking Coloureds but accepts South Africans of English ancestry and other White South Africans, if they accept Afrikaner culture and customs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julius Malema</span> South African politician

Julius Sello Malema is a South African politician who is a Member of Parliament and the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), a far left-wing party which he founded in 2013. He was formerly the President of the African National Congress (ANC) Youth League from 2008 until his expulsion from the party in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afrikaners</span> Southern African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers

Afrikaners are a South African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers first arriving at the Cape of Good Hope in 1652. Until 1994, they dominated South Africa's politics as well as the country's commercial agricultural sector. Afrikaners make up approximately 5.2% of the total South African population, based upon the number of White South Africans who speak Afrikaans as a first language in the South African National Census of 2011. Afrikaans, South Africa's third most widely spoken home language, evolved as the mother tongue of Afrikaners and most Cape Coloureds. It originated in the Dutch vernacular of South Holland, incorporating words brought from the Dutch East Indies and Madagascar by slaves.

Racism in South Africa can be traced back to the earliest historical accounts of interactions between African, Asian, and European peoples along the coast of Southern Africa. It has existed throughout several centuries of the history of South Africa, dating back to the Dutch colonization of Southern Africa, which started in 1652. Before universal suffrage was achieved in 1994, White South Africans, especially Afrikaners during the period of Apartheid, enjoyed various legally or socially sanctioned privileges and rights that were denied to the indigenous African peoples. Examples of systematic racism over the course of South Africa's history include forced removals, racial inequality and segregation, uneven resource distribution, and disenfranchisement. Racial controversies and politics remain major phenomena in the country.

AfriForum is a South African non-governmental organisation focused mainly on the interests of Afrikaners, a subgroup of the country's white population. AfriForum has been described as a white nationalist, alt-right, and Afrikaner nationalist group, though this description is rejected by the organisation's leadership, who refer to themselves as a civil rights group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Economic Freedom Fighters</span> Far-left political party in South Africa

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) is a South African far-left pan-Africanist and Marxist–Leninist political party. It was founded by expelled former African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) President Julius Malema, and his allies, in 2013. Malema is President of the EFF, heading the Central Command Team which serves as the central structure of the party. It is currently the third-largest party in both houses of the South African Parliament.

Dubul' ibhunu, translated as shoot the Boer or kill the Boer, is a South African song. It has been criticised as being racist by AfriForum, the Democratic Alliance, and the Freedom Front Plus. It is sung in Xhosa and Zulu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naledi Chirwa</span> South African feminist, legislator and student activist

Naledi Nokukhanya Chirwa is a South African feminist, legislator and former student activist serving as a Member of the National Assembly of South Africa. A member of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), she was sworn in as an MP on 22 May 2019. She is one of the youngest MPs of the 6th Parliament. Chirwa was involved in the #FeesMustFall student protests that occurred at the University of Pretoria between 2015 and 2016.

Nokulunga Primrose Sonti is a South African politician from the North West who has been serving as a Member of the National Assembly of South Africa for the Economic Freedom Fighters since May 2014. Sonti was previously a member of the African National Congress.

Shirley Motshegoane Mokgotho is a South African politician, who was elected to the National Assembly of South Africa in the 2019 general election. Mokgotho is a member of the Economic Freedom Fighters.

Michael Collen Sedibe is a South African politician who is currently a Member of the Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature and the provincial leader of the legislature's official opposition party, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF). He joined the EFF in 2013 after he was expelled from the African National Congress and he was first elected to the provincial legislature in the 2014 general election. In September 2022, he was elected to a third term as the EFF's Provincial Chairperson in Mpumalanga.

Thamsanqa China Dodovu is a South African politician who is currently serving as a Delegate to the National Council of Provinces since May 2019. He was formerly the Mayor of Klerksdorp's Matlosana Local Municipality and served as the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Local Government and Traditional Affairs in the North West provincial government from May 2012 until June 2013. Dodovu is a member of the African National Congress and served as the party's Deputy Provincial Chairperson in the North West from 2011 to 2015.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Main Place Biesiesvlei". Census 2011.
  2. "North West's water contamination: A dark story of lost and ruined lives". Daily Maverick. 9 July 2014. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  3. Breaking News: Farm attacks surge in SA after EFF sings "Kill the Boer" song, thesouthafrican.com. Accessed 8 August 2023.