Oukasie township

Oukasie Township is a township located north of Brits town in Madibeng Local Municipality in the North West Province of South Africa.^[1] The population living in the township is mostly Black Africans with a small number of Coloureds as well as Whites.It was established in 1927 as a labour camp. In 2005 Oukasie was officially declared as a township. It is demarcated into sections namely:

Masenkeng
Greenside
Vuka
Noodkamp
Oukasie library building
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3

There are also informal settlements in Oukasie i.e. Siyahlala, Mountainwiew, Lindelani, Phase 4 and Corrie Sanders.

Forced removals

No housing was provided by the government in Oukasie. The National Party wanted to remove Oukasie from where it was located in the 1960s.^[2] Some of the people were moved to Ga-Rankuwa and Mabopane which were townships established to relocate people from Lady Selborne in Pretoria in the Tshwane Metro Municipality. In 1969 The government moved a number of families to Mothotlung which is 10 kilometers away North-East of Brits. In the 1970s some residents who were unable to get permits To reside in Oukasie moved to Soshanguve in Pretoria. Some families moved to Hartebeesfontein now known as Lethabong^[3] in the Rustenburg Municipality. In 1985 the intention by government to relocate the people of Oukasie intensified. They wanted to relocate Oukasie to Letlhabile a newly developed township 25 kilometers away from Brits. The people were offered monetary compensation, assistance with demolition of their dwellings the majority of which were shacks, transportation as well as an allocation of a stand and a zozo in Letlhabile^[4].^[5]

Schools

There are three primary schools and one high school in Oukasie namely:

Odi Primary
Kutlwano Primary
Oukasie Primary
Botlhabelo High

Oukasie Development Trust (ODT)

Oukasie Development Trust (ODT) is an organisation that was formed to develop Oukasie after the community refused to be moved to Letlahabile. It was initiated by an activist named Jacob Moatshe together with other activists who were against the relocation of Oukasie township.

References

^ Baumann, Ted, et al. WHAT HAS BEEN ACHIEVED. International Institute for Environment and Development, 2001, pp. 7–17, The Age of Cities and Organizations of the Urban Poor: the Work of the South African Homeless People’s Federation and the People’s Dialogue on Land and Shelter, www.jstor.org/stable/resrep01757.6. Accessed 13 Apr. 2021.
^ Forrest, Kally (2019). Bonds of justice:the struggle for Oukasie. Johannesburg: Fanele. ISBN 9781928232841.
^ "Hartebees Lethabong Rustenburg 🇿🇦 - WorldPlaces". south-africa.worldplaces.me. November 5, 2024.
^ Morris, Alan (1989). "The South African State and the Oukasie Removal". pp. 24 46. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
^ Fieuw, Walter. We Die Together: The Emergence and Evolution of the Homeless People's Alliance. International Institute for Environment and Development, 2014, www.jstor.org/stable/resrep01300. Accessed 13 Apr. 2021.

[1] Baumann, Ted, et al. WHAT HAS BEEN ACHIEVED. International Institute for Environment and Development, 2001, pp. 7–17, The Age of Cities and Organizations of the Urban Poor: the Work of the South African Homeless People’s Federation and the People’s Dialogue on Land and Shelter, www.jstor.org/stable/resrep01757.6. Accessed 13 Apr. 2021.

[2] Forrest, Kally (2019). Bonds of justice:the struggle for Oukasie. Johannesburg: Fanele. ISBN 9781928232841.

[3] "Hartebees Lethabong Rustenburg 🇿🇦 - WorldPlaces". south-africa.worldplaces.me. November 5, 2024.

[4] Morris, Alan (1989). "The South African State and the Oukasie Removal". pp. 24 46. Retrieved 11 November 2024.

[5] Fieuw, Walter. We Die Together: The Emergence and Evolution of the Homeless People's Alliance. International Institute for Environment and Development, 2014, www.jstor.org/stable/resrep01300. Accessed 13 Apr. 2021.

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