Kleinfontein

Last updated

Kleinfontein
South Africa Gauteng location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Kleinfontein
South Africa adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Kleinfontein
Africa location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Kleinfontein
Coordinates: 25°49′55″S28°30′04″E / 25.832°S 28.501°E / -25.832; 28.501
Country South Africa
Province Gauteng
Municipality City of Tshwane
Established1992
Area
  Total8.6 km2 (3.3 sq mi)
Population
[1]
  Total650
  Density76/km2 (200/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+2 (SAST)
Website http://www.kleinfontein.net/

Kleinfontein is a culturally segregated, Afrikaner-only settlement near Pretoria, South Africa that was founded in 1992. Members of the African National Congress and Democratic Alliance youth have denounced the settlement and the continued existence of Afrikaner-only settlements in post-Apartheid South Africa. [2] [3]

Contents

History

The entrance to the town displays a bust of Paul Kruger, a monument that commemarates the Battle of Blood River, [4] the day Jan van Riebeeck landed in South-Africa, Paardekraal and a bust of Hendrik Verwoerd, [5] considered [6] by some as the "father of Apartheid"; the community obtained the bust from a cultural group. [7]

As of 2013, the population of Kleinfontein was about 900 Afrikaners during the day, of which about 650 were residents and about 400 were shareholders. Kleinfontein's area has grown from the original 500 hectares to the current 860 hectares, and stretches just off the N4 highway beyond the Boschkop road. [1] As of November 2013, the Gauteng legislature recognised Kleinfontein as a cultural community. [8] [9] The City of Pretoria still refused to declare it a separate development or a formal township. Efforts to be recognized as a separate legal entity have not been successful. Following the legislature's investigation into Kleinfontein, there were 450 shareholders and 1,000 residents, living in around 300 homes. [8] Article 185 of the South African Constitution allows citizens of a similar cultural, linguistic, or religious group to associate with each other.

The settlement consists of a single, undivided property. The ownership of individual residents is by a shareblock scheme [10] [11] similar to its sister town Orania. [12] Van Wyk (2014) reports that two categories of inhabitants can be distinguished: older, retired people and younger middle-class professionals. [12]

Criticism

Kleinfontein has been criticised for its policy of barring all non-Afrikaners from settling in the community. Protests were held in May 2013 when the Democratic Alliance and the ANC competed in local elections. [13] The community has also been criticised by the South African government for engaging in practices that once led to a "divided South Africa." [14] Residents of the community defend their practice by saying that they are defending their own separate cultural identity. [15] [16]

Some residents of the community have also objected to the "restricted" nature of the community which prevents them from selling their home to the buyer of their choice. [17]

Geography

The town is located roughly halfway between Pretoria and Bronkhorstspruit. It lies just south of the N4, just west of the R515, a few kilometers south of Rayton, on the Magaliesberg mountain range at the historical terrain where the Battle of Diamond Hill (Afrikaans : die slag van Donkerhoek) took place during the Second Boer War.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pretoria</span> Administrative capital of South Africa

Pretoria, is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johannesburg</span> Largest city in South Africa

Johannesburg is the most populous city in South Africa with 4,803,262 people, and is classified as a megacity; it is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. It is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa. Johannesburg is the seat of the Constitutional Court, the highest court in South Africa. Most of the major South African companies and banks have their head offices in Johannesburg. The city is located within the mineral-rich Witwatersrand hills, the epicentre of the international-scale mineral, gold and (specifically) diamond trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hendrik Verwoerd</span> Prime Minister of South Africa from 1958 to 1961

Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd, also known as H. F. Verwoerd, was a Dutch-born South African politician, scholar, and newspaper editor who was Prime Minister of South Africa and is commonly regarded as the architect of apartheid and nicknamed the "father of apartheid". Verwoerd played a significant role in socially engineering apartheid, the country's system of institutionalized racial segregation and white supremacy, and implementing its policies, as Minister of Native Affairs (1950–1958) and then as prime minister (1958–1966). Furthermore, Verwoerd played a vital role in helping the far-right National Party come to power in 1948, serving as their political strategist and propagandist, becoming party leader upon his premiership. He was the Union of South Africa's last prime minister, from 1958 to 1961, when he proclaimed the founding of the Republic of South Africa, remaining its prime minister until his assassination in 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Party (South Africa)</span> 1914–1997 political party known for implementing apartheid

The National Party, also known as the Nationalist Party, was a political party in South Africa from 1914 to 1997, which was responsible for the implementation of apartheid rule. The party was an Afrikaner ethnic nationalist party, which initially promoted the interests of Afrikaners but later became a stalwart promoter and enactor of white supremacy, for which it is best known. It first became the governing party of the country in 1924. It merged with its rival, the SAP, during the Great Depression, and a splinter faction became the official opposition during World War II and returned to power. With the National Party governing South Africa from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994, the country for the bulk of this time was only a de jure or partial democracy, as from 1958 onwards non-white people were barred from voting. In 1990, it began to style itself as simply a South African civic nationalist party, and after the fall of apartheid in 1994, attempted to become a moderate conservative one. The party's reputation was damaged irreparably by perpetrating apartheid, and it rebranded itself as the New National Party in 1997 before eventually dissolving in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. G. Strijdom</span> Prime Minister of South Africa from 1954 to 1958

Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom, also known as Hans Strijdom and nicknamed the Lion of the North or the Lion of Waterberg, was the fifth prime minister of South Africa from 30 November 1954 to his death on 24 August 1958. He was an uncompromising Afrikaner nationalist and a member of the largest, baasskap faction of the National Party (NP), who further accentuated the NP's apartheid policies and break with the Union of South Africa in favour of a republic during his rule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freedom Front Plus</span> Political party in South Africa

The Freedom Front Plus is a right-wing political party in South Africa that was formed in 1994. It is led by Pieter Groenewald. Since 2024, it is a part of the current South African government of national unity together with the African National Congress (ANC), the Democratic Alliance and other parties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orania</span> Town in Northern Cape, South Africa

Orania is an Afrikaner nationalist town in South Africa, founded by Afrikaners. It is located along the Orange River in the Karoo region of the Northern Cape province. The town is split in two halves by the R369 road, and is 871 kilometres (541 mi) from Cape Town and approximately 680 kilometres (420 mi) from Pretoria. Its climate is semi-arid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beyers Naudé</span> South African cleric, theologian and anti-apartheid activist (1915 - 2004)

Christiaan Frederick Beyers Naudé was a South African Afrikaner Calvinist Dominee, theologian and the leading Afrikaner anti-apartheid activist. He was known simply as Beyers Naudé, or more colloquially, Oom Bey.

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

A Volkstaat, also called a Boerestaat, is a proposed White homeland for Afrikaners within the borders of South Africa, most commonly proposed as a fully independent Boer/Afrikaner nation. The proposed state would exclude Afrikaans-speaking Coloureds but accept South Africans of English ancestry and other White South Africans, if they accept Afrikaner culture and customs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afrikaner nationalism</span> Political ideology in South Africa

Afrikaner nationalism is a nationalistic political ideology created by Afrikaners residing in Southern Africa during the Victorian era. The ideology was developed in response to the significant events in Afrikaner history such as the Great Trek, the First and Second Boer Wars and the resulting anti-British sentiment that developed among Afrikaners and opposition to South Africa's entry into World War I.

Vereniging van Oranjewerkers is a South African white separatist political movement that seeks a homeland for Afrikaners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carel Boshoff</span> South African academic, writer and politician, former proponent of Apartheid, founder of Orania

Carel Willem Hendrik Boshoff was a South African professor of theology and Afrikaner white nationalist.

AfriForum is a South African non-governmental organisation which mainly focuses 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">Heroes' Day (South Africa)</span>

Kruger Day or Heroes' Day was a official public holiday in South Africa from 1882 to 1899 and again from 1952 to 1994, which celebrated annually on 10 October. The day was named after Paul Kruger, a South African politician who served as president of the South African Republic; the holiday celebrated his birthday on October 10. The day was used to underline the values and principles of the Afrikaner people.

Balmoral is a town in the Emalahleni Local Municipality in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. The village was established as a railway station of the Oosterlijn from Pretoria to Maputo in 1894. The village and railway station were erected at the farm Eenzaamheid. For decades the village was nothing more than a railway stop with a primary school for the surrounding farms. During the Second Boer War, the British built a concentration camp near the railway station.

The Accord on Afrikaner self-determination is a South African political accord that recognises the right of the Afrikaner people on self-determination. The accord was signed by the Freedom Front, the African National Congress and the National Party-led South African government on 23 April 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Betsie Verwoerd</span> Wife of Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd

Elizabeth "Betsie" Verwoerd was the spouse of the Prime Minister of South Africa from 2 September 1958 until the assassination of her husband Hendrik Verwoerd on 6 September 1966.

Wynand Johannes Boshoff is a South African academic and politician from the Northern Cape serving as a Member of the National Assembly of South Africa for the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) since 2019. He has been serving as the Provincial Leader of the FF+ since 2015. He previously served as a municipal councillor of the Sol Plaatje Local Municipality from 2016 to 2019. Boshoff is the grandson of the assassinated apartheid-era Prime Minister of South Africa, Hendrik Verwoerd, who served from 1958 until 1966, and the son of Afrikaner enclave Orania founder, Carel Boshoff.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carel Boshoff IV</span> South African politician and writer

Carel Willem Hendrik Boshoff, is a South African politician and writer known for being the leader of the Afrikaner-only town Orania.

Whites Only: Ade's Extremist Adventure is a British documentary presented by Ade Adepitan, about the Afrikaner town of Orania, South Africa. The documentary premiered on Channel 4 on 18 March 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 Ontstaan en Geskiedenis Archived 2010-12-30 at the Wayback Machine , Official site
  2. "Kleinfontein segregation not about race". News24. May 23, 2013. Archived from the original on June 7, 2013. Retrieved 2013-05-23.
  3. "Welcome to Kleinfontein, lingering outpost of apartheid South Africa". TheGuardian.com . 30 July 2013.
  4. "Battle of Blood River", Wikipedia, 2022-06-23, retrieved 2022-08-10
  5. Bruton, F. Brinley (20 June 2013). "All-white town fights to preserve segregation in Mandela's 'Rainbow Nation'". World News NBC. Archived from the original on 6 August 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  6. "DA 'removes Verwoerd statue'". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
  7. Raghavan, Sudarsan (30 July 2013). "Welcome to Kleinfontein, lingering outpost of apartheid South Africa". Guardian Weekly. Archived from the original on 31 July 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  8. 1 2 Archived 2013-11-25 at the Wayback Machine
  9. "Kleinfontein settlement recognised as cultural community - FF+ - POLITICS | Politicsweb". Archived from the original on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
  10. https://www.timeslive.co.za/authors/iavanpijoos. "Boer maak 'n plan: how a community is lightening life at Donkerhoek". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 2022-08-10.{{cite web}}: External link in |last= (help)
  11. "Aandeleblokskema", Wikipedia (in Afrikaans), 2021-08-14, retrieved 2022-08-10
  12. 1 2 Van Wyk, Johannes Stephanus (2014). "Buying into Kleinfontein: the Financial Implications of Afrikaner Self-Determination" (PDF). University of Pretoria. p. iv. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 August 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
  13. "DA Youth protest outside Kleinfontein". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
  14. Government shocked by racist Kleinfontein - Politics | IOL News | IOL.co.za Archived 2013-06-07 at the Wayback Machine
  15. Kleinfontein: Pretoria’s own Orania - Gauteng | IOL News | IOL.co.za Archived 2013-07-03 at the Wayback Machine
  16. Kleinfontein segregation not about race | News24 Archived 2013-06-07 at the Wayback Machine
  17. This is Kleinfontein - White couple not Afrikaner enough for racist settlement near Pretoria - SundayWorld Archived 2013-06-26 at the Wayback Machine