Atteridgeville

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Template:Infobox South African town Atteridgeville, is a township located to the west of Pretoria, South Africa. It is bordered to the west by Saulsville, to the east by Proclamation Hill; to the south by Laudium and to the north by Lotus Gardens. The settlement was established in 1939,[citation needed] and is named after Mrs MP Atteridge, chairwoman of the Committee for Non-European Affairs on the Pretoria City Council at the time. The Lucas Masterpieces Moripe Stadium is located in Atteridgeville.[1]

History

Early years

Atteridgeville was established by the government in 1939[2] as a settlement for black people by the government, after much lobbying by Mrs Myrtle Patricia Atteridge, the chairwoman of the Committee for Non-European Affairs on the City Council at that time.[3] Atteridgeville was established nine years prior to the voting in of the apartheid government in 1948. The first occupants were moved to Atteridgeville from Marabastad on 26 May 1940.[2][2] Mrs Atteridge, who was also a philanthropist, Black Sash activist and the deputy mayoress of Pretoria, endeavoured to improve living conditions of black people who were previously living in squalid conditions in Marabastad.[4] Atteridgeville provided amenities such as brick housing, lighting and toilets, and later, so as to further enhance living standards, the township was connected by train to Pretoria CBD. Schools, creches and clinics were established thereafter. The naming of the township was in fact suggested by the black people themselves who also requested Mrs Atteridge to represent them in parliament which she refused as she was disinclined to participate in an exclusionary regime. Between 1940 and 1949 more than 1500 houses were built for people relocated from Marabastad, Bantule and other areas around Pretoria.[5]

Apartheid era

Development was frozen between 1968 and 1978 in accordance with the government's policy that housing provided for black people be limited to the homelands. In 1984, Atteridgeville was granted municipal status.

1984 saw school boycotts and general unrest when demands by the Congress of South African Students to implement democratic Students' Representative Councils in schools were rejected by the Department of Education and Training.The first victim of the school boycotts was Emma Sathekge from David Helen Peta High School.[6] The schools were suspended for the better part of 1984 and exams were not written by all High school learners.[7][8]

On 15 April 1988 a bomb explosion caused damage to the Atteridgeville Municipal buildings; no-one was injured during the attack. The attack was planned by Umkhonto we Sizwe and executed by one of their members, Johannes Maleka.[9] In November 2000, Johannes Maleka was granted amnesty for his part in the attack by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.[9][10] Atteridgeville is the only township in Gauteng that blocked Zulu-land migrants from forcefully occupying Hostels, prominent members of the ANC in the township including Dr Abe Nkomo, Mr Rami Dau, Reeves Mabitsi and Kgomotso Mokoka held the forefront.[citation needed]

Demographics

Atteridgeville is a diverse township, the residents of which speak many languages. According to the 2011 census, the most commonly spoken language is Northern Sotho, followed by Tswana and Sesotho. A mixture of languages such as Afrikaans, Sesotho, English and isiZulu are sometimes fused together to form what is now a unique language style of the township with a slight inclination to slang known as tsotsitaal.

War memorial

The Mendi Memorial is a war memorial dedicated to over 600 black South African soldiers who died when the British SS Mendi sank after a tragic collision in 1917, during the First World War.[11] The memorial was unveiled on the 24 March 1996. The memorial consist of the upper half of a soldier holding onto a ships railing with the other hand extended towards the sky.

The memorial is located at the 'Gamothaga Resort 'on the corner of Pitse and Tlou Streets.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Lucas 'Masterpieces' Moripe". Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b c "Atteridgeville". South African History Online. Archived from the original on November 22, 2007. Retrieved 12 August 2009.
  3. ^ Pretoria the Segregated city, South African History Online, retrieved 29 July 2015
  4. ^ The community of Atteridgeville wants to honour Mrs. Patricia Atteridge, www.702.co.za, retrieved 29 July 2015
  5. ^ "ATTERIDGEVILLE / SAULSVILLE". SAWEB. Archived from the original on 2010-03-13. Retrieved 2009-08-12. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ "ATTERIDGEVILLE/SAULSVILLE" (PDF). www.historicalpapers.wits.ac.za. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  7. ^ "Youth celebrate two decades of militant struggle". African National Congress. Archived from the original on 2007-10-06. Retrieved 2009-08-12. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Pretoria the Segregated city". South African History Online. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  9. ^ a b "PROCLAMATION UNDER SECTION 20 OF THE PROMOTION OF NATIONAL UNITY AND RECONCILIATION ACT, 1995 (ACT NO. 34 OF 1995)". Government Gazette, Vol. 444, No. 23328, 14 June 2002. South African Government. Archived from the original on 2011-09-23. Retrieved 2009-08-12. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ "AC/2000/199 - APPLICATION IN TERMS OF SECTION 18 OF THE PROMOTION OF NATIONAL UNITY AND RECONCILIATION ACT, NO. 34 OF 1995". Truth and Reconciliation Commission (South Africa). Retrieved 2009-08-12.
  11. ^ http://allatsea.co.za/blog/the-mendi-memorial-in-atteridgeville/
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