In the article below, journalist Lucille Davie uncovers some of the powerful and painful history of Sophiatown. She highlights the origins of the suburb, its vibrant cultural scene and the tragedy of the forced removals. The piece was originally published on the City of Joburg's website on 20 March 2003.
Since June 2000 more than R21-million in land compensation claims has been paid out to ex-Sophiatown residents. This adds up to 544 claims of R40 000 each.
The payments, considered by the national Land Affairs Department to be “restitution awards”, were paid as a “gesture of reconciliation” for the loss of homes and indignity suffered by residents at the time of removals.
The Department’s unofficial tally of R21 760 000 has been paid for Sophiatown and the small neighbouring suburb of Martindale (now a light industrial area).
The Department arrived at the figure of R40 000 as an estimate of the current average value of a stand in present-day Sophiatown, estimated by an estate agent in the area to be around R50 000-R60 000. Stands with houses sell for around R200 000 nowadays.
Sophiatown, renamed Triomf in the 1960s, was a lively, mostly-black suburb that was cleared and flattened by the end of 1963 by the apartheid government.
Former Sophiatown residents are not happy with the R40 000 payment. Charlotte Girlie Malikaf, who died a month ago at 92, received this amount for her stand at 54 Edward Road.
Her granddaughter Yolande Frederick was not impressed with the amount paid out or the process of arriving...
