South African Poverty

South Africa is not the poster nation of poverty, although it isn't hard to find if you open your eyes. South Africa is one of those marvels, where you can be in the awe of million dollar waterfront property one minute, drive by moving hawkers on the side of the road selling all sorts of items, and then you are driving by makeshift sprawling townships that go as far as the eye can see. On a 4 hour trip from the airport to Mafriking we experienced the three nations of South Africa many times. Unfortunately, one of those times included a pay toilet with no paper (luckily I had been fascinated by the purple t.p. at the petrol station we stopped at prior and had a stash on me)...

When I wrote about Kenya, it was purely from an academic point of view. But writing about South Africa floods my memory with firsthand accounts of what I experienced on my trip not too long ago. I can picture the beauty and the despair almost in the same moment. Remembering the place we drank tea, that was gated away from the crime of the city. I can recall staying in a home with an elaborate security system (alarm, gates, double locks on doors, double doors) and then attending church at Nelson Mandela Community Church in Khayelitscha, one of the townships hardest hit by HIV/AIDS. The children were excited because they just had recently been given access to electricity and running water in the area.

White plastic lawn chairs... they were everywhere... but not in the lavish malls just 30 minutes away... I did not visit inside the shantytown homes... I did not step foot inside a shack... i have no tangible ideas of what "living" in poverty means... but I have seen the disparities between University of Cape Town and Penninsula Technikon University... the difference in grocery stores between the two "college towns"... the poor I came in contact with were pleasant, lovely, loveable people. Most people I met were not poor, or would not think of themselves as poor. The girls who will always be in my heart were some of the richest in spirit I have ever met, even if they slept more to a dorm room than I was ever comfortable with in college.

Reading a story about President Zuma's vow to provide water and housing to townships brought back all my thoughts and memories from the best trip of my life (for oh so many reasons).

Please read this story (compliments of the BBC's website)

Zuma vows help for SA townships
South Africa's President Jacob Zuma has promised to deliver better services, such as water and housing, in a bid to end township protests this month. But he warned that there could be no justification for violence.
Mr Zuma also urged understanding from council and other workers threatening to strike for higher wages. Some 200 people have been arrested in the demonstrations, which revived memories of the deadly xenophobic attacks on foreigners last year.
Fifteen years after the African National Congress won its first election, more than one million South Africans still live in shacks, many without access to electricity or running water.
“ Employers and workers must negotiate in good faith and should be prepared to understand each other's positions ” President Jacob Zuma
The ANC has, however, built some 3m homes in that time.
The BBC's Jonah Fisher in Johannesburg says most of the anger has been directed towards local officials and not Mr Zuma, who has only been in power for two months.
His election campaign was based on promises to tackle poverty and unemployment.
During some of this month's protests, police have fired rubber bullets at demonstrators as the riots turned violent.
"Our constitution allows our people the right of freedom of assembly and expression and to protest where they feel they need to, but this must be done within the ambit of the law," Mr Zuma said. "There can be no justification for violence, looting and destruction of property or attacks on foreign nationals residing in our country," he said.

South Africa announced in June that it was facing its worst recession in 17 years.
Our correspondent says it is the middle of winter in South Africa - bitterly cold - and job losses mean the recession is really biting as people cannot afford their fuel bills.
It is also the time of year when workers are negotiating next year's pay rises and strikes are being threatened across many sectors, he says.

Recently doctors and workers building stadium for the 2010 football World Cup were on strike.
Some 150,000 council workers have called a strike to start on Monday.
"Due to the current economic conditions, these negotiations may be more difficult this year," Mr Zuma said. "Employers and workers must negotiate in good faith and should be prepared to understand each other's positions."

Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/8166725.stmPublished: 2009/07/24 10:41:03 GMT© BBC MMIX