"My friends call me Jozi."

The Orlando power station, Soweto.  A playground for bungee jumpers and thrill seekers.

Two thumbs up in Kliptown, Soweto.



On 9 May, 1994, South Africa's first democratically elected parliament met for its first sitting.

Sprawling Johannesburg with remnants of gold mines on the horizon.

 "Pay careful attention to your personal security in Jo'burg.  Daylight muggings in the city centre and other inner city suburbs, notably Hillbrow, do happen and you must be constantly on guard."  (Lonely Planet, Southern Africa)

It is statements like this that kept Jo'burg off my 'must see' list.   However, I thought I'd make use of a layover enroute to Nairobi to make up my own mind about the city.  I signed up for the 'Ultimate Johannesburg Tour' to see the highlights of Johannesburg, Soweto, and to visit the Apartheid Museum.  I even had the guide drive me through the densly populated and notorious Hillbrow. 

In Soweto, I was struck by evidence of a growing middle and upper class in close proximity to the slums whose denizens are still waiting for public housing.  Unlike parts of Jo'burg, you don't see a lot of security gates and fences.  I asked the guide why.  He said that in the townships, the residents deal with crime in their own way.

We visited Walter Sisulu Square in Kliptown, where, on June 25, 1955, over 3,000 representatives of resistance organisations, known as the Congress of the People, drew up the Freedom Charter, an alternative vision to the repressive policies of the apartheid state.  The Charter remains the cornerstone of African National Congress (ANC) policy to this day, and is seen by many as the foundation of South Africa's 1996 Constitution.  Here are the tenets of the Freedom Charter:

The people shall govern

 All national groups shall have equal rights
 The people shall share in the country's wealth
 The land shall be shared among those who work it
 All shall be equal before the law
All shall enjoy human rights
There shall be work and security
 The doors of learning and culture shall be opened
 There shall be houses, security and comfort
 There shall be peace and friendship

I think the last one is my favourite.

Back in Johannesburg, the Apartheid Museum was a moving testimony of a very recent history.  I plan to take a visitor there next month.  

1994 is not that long ago, however, and the wounds are still fresh.

I asked my guide what he thought about the Truth and Reconciliation process, and he said, "We have tried to move on and forgive the Apartheid regime... but you know what ? - they never said they were sorry.  It is hard to forgive someone who isn't sorry.", echoing the famous statement of Archbishop Desmond Tutu: "Without forgiveness there is no future, but without confession there can be no forgiveness."

Thank you for the enlightening visit, Jozi.  I will be back !