Tag: johannesburg

Posted on

Nelson Mandela: From Alexandra to Houghton

In 1940, a 22-year old recently politicized Nelson Mandela found himself expelled from Fort Hare University for his involvement in a student strike. On the cusp of an unwanted arranged marriage, he escaped his home in the Eastern Cape for the promise of Johannesburg. Mandela ended up in Alexandra (or Alex), a sprawling township known as ‘Dark City’ because of its lack of electricity.

“Alexandra occupies a treasured place in my heart,” Mandela wrote in his autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom.

“Life in Alexandra was exhilarating and precarious. Its atmosphere was alive, its spirit adventurous, its people resourceful. In spite of the hellish aspects of life in Alexandra, the township was also a kind of heaven.”

As the struggle continued, Mandela found himself in other neighbourhoods, including Orlando in Soweto. Later he was moved across the country where he spent 27 years in prison. After South Africa’s transition to democracy, and following his single term as president, Mandela moved back to Johannesburg, to what would be his final home in Houghton, a wealthy and opulent suburb north-east of the city centre.

Today, Alex is still steeped in crime and poverty. Steel shacks echo across the township, while refuse and rubbish litters many streets and alleyways.

Although Alex is just a 15-minute drive away from Houghton, Mandela’s first and last homes are, in many ways, still a world apart.

http://www.aljazeera.com/

Posted on

Bomb explodes near Johannesburg Mall in a shop owned by businessman Radovan Krejcir

Johannesburg – A bomb exploded in Bedfordview near the Eastgate shopping mall late Tuesday afternoon, Ekurhuleni metro police said.

“There was a bomb explosion at the corner of Bradford and Nicol roads in Bedfordview,” said police spokesperson Wilfred Kgasago.

He said metro police had no further information at this stage.

Eyewitness News reported the blast was at a shop owned by businessman Radovan Krejcir, who is currently fighting his extradition to the Czech Republic where he is facing a prison sentence.

– SAPA
Posted on
Idris Elba smiles while talking about Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. Idris plays Nelson Mandela in the movie.

Pic: Cornél van Heerden

Posted on

Johannesburg: Inner-city organic vegetable garden

In the year 2006 in Betrams, just off the border of central Johannesburg and a stone
throw away from the Ellis park Stadium, two unused bowl courts where changed into a
vegetable garden by Maria Maseko. Today Amon Maluleke is the manager of the
Bambanani vegetable garden. He is a full time landscape technician and main
supervisor of the Johannesburg sports grounds not far from there. During his lunch
times, early in the morning and after work he spends his time at the garden. He comes
from the Limpopo area and has finished a certificate in horticultural studies. This is
however not all that he does.
He is currently studying towards a diploma in ornamental horticulture. He has worked on his
brother’s farm where he started to learn to make vegetable gardens as part of his
punishment. This has followed him to Johannesburg and he couldn’t stop making
vegetable gardens since then. The garden has now 8 gardeners of which 2 are full
time employed. Bambanani vegetable gardens deliver vegetables to a few Spar
retailers and to the Bryanston Organic market in the area. It just goes from strength to
strength.

Posted on

Bill Clinton in South Africa – By: Cornél van Heerden

Bill Clinton, former President of United States of America and his daughter, Chelsea, visited South Africa last week.

Pictures: Cornél van Heerden

Posted on

Doreen Kutsedi

Doreen Kutsedi, a blind lady, who faces various challenges as a Johannesburg citizen, which is not friendly to blind people. One issue is that she for instance cannot cross traffic lights on her own, because the traffic lights do not give audio clues of what colour the traffic light it.