During the second half of the forties, between 63,000 and
92,500 Africans settled in squatter camps in and around Johannesburg.' The
camps were mostly situated beyond the city's south-western borders, in the area
which later became Soweto, but there were also camps at Alexandra, ten miles to
the north, and at least one within a few miles of the city's centre and one at Albertan,
six miles south-east of Johannesburg. The largest of these densely concentrated
settlements accounted for anything up to 20,000 inhabitants who occupied
dwellings of hessian-sacking, wood, corrugated iron and cardboard. The
settlements which will be discussed here were organized into movements led by
individual leaders and committees. One such leader, James Mpanza, organized his
movement as the Sofasonke party, which revealed religious and military
overtones, while another, Schreiner Baduza, organized squatting as a deliberate
strategy in the political struggles of the poor. In most cases, such leaders
mobilized a following and settled on vacant land. They levied charges on the
inhabitants, established services and an administration, including 'police' and
'courts', and assumed control over trading activities in the camps. The closely
settled camps and the considerable authority of the leaders served to increase
the autonomy of the squatter communities.
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