-
Join the MyBroadband community
South Africa’s biggest forum. Discuss, discover, and connect with thousands of members.
-
Question of the Day: At what point do you sell your car?
Solomon Family gets back Constantia farm
- Thread starter froggytoo
- Start date
Indeed very good, as it wlil increase food security.
Patience paid off for them. 
However after 40 years it will take them time to regain their pride and dignity that was stolen from them. Basically two generations have been born in this period. Only the elders will know the anguish their parents or grandparents must have endured.
Irony be told, people that were forcibly removed were probably moved onto land that was also expropriated.
Expropriated land on the Cape Flats like Lotus River and surrounds. There were many farms that were expropriated for peanuts from white people for all sorts of seemingly valid reasons at the time. Ask Council now why a piece of land standing vacant was expropriated, you will be met with puzzled faces as those Officials that did all those ugly things are either dead or retired. The new order haven't the foggiest.
In the area near where I stay there are two such chunks of land (10Ha and 44Ha) that were expropriated during this era and both still stand fallow. In the one case the family tried in vain to reclaim their land (44Ha) but to no avail. The complexities of their case I don't have any details for you, but they were white folk. Speaks volumes to me.
In our own family's history the Provincial Government expropriated my entailed Great Grandfathers property in one of our plush suburbs of Cape Town, which was been held at the Master's Office for winding up purposes for some 15 odd years, for school playing fields. Despite pleas from the remaining family to the Administrator of The Cape, the expropriation was pushed through.
It made no difference to them that an entire family had been born on that property, many had lived and died there for 65 years since the Great Grandfather had bought it. All this through 3 Wars (Anglo Boer War, WWI, WWII) and the Great Depression, when people were so poor* that if you wanted food you grew it in the garden, as there was no money for essential items or luxuries.
The whole scenario was weird. Almost as if the family had just been holding the land for the Government to take.
*One of the stories told to me by my father to emphasise how poor people were during that era was that my Great Uncle who was a Fitter and Turner having no job or money during the time of the Great Depression or earlier climbed on a Train at Cape Town, travelled to Upington and walked from Upington to the Diamond Mines at Alexander Bay/Oranjemund - not sure of the distance - on the off chance of getting a job there.
People nowadays cannot comprehend how tough things were back then.
That when The Government said jump, you basically didn't complain, but asked how high.
Look at how many South Africans threw their lives away during the 2 Great Wars simply because the Government said it was your duty to do so.
However after 40 years it will take them time to regain their pride and dignity that was stolen from them. Basically two generations have been born in this period. Only the elders will know the anguish their parents or grandparents must have endured.
Irony be told, people that were forcibly removed were probably moved onto land that was also expropriated.
Expropriated land on the Cape Flats like Lotus River and surrounds. There were many farms that were expropriated for peanuts from white people for all sorts of seemingly valid reasons at the time. Ask Council now why a piece of land standing vacant was expropriated, you will be met with puzzled faces as those Officials that did all those ugly things are either dead or retired. The new order haven't the foggiest.
In the area near where I stay there are two such chunks of land (10Ha and 44Ha) that were expropriated during this era and both still stand fallow. In the one case the family tried in vain to reclaim their land (44Ha) but to no avail. The complexities of their case I don't have any details for you, but they were white folk. Speaks volumes to me.
In our own family's history the Provincial Government expropriated my entailed Great Grandfathers property in one of our plush suburbs of Cape Town, which was been held at the Master's Office for winding up purposes for some 15 odd years, for school playing fields. Despite pleas from the remaining family to the Administrator of The Cape, the expropriation was pushed through.
It made no difference to them that an entire family had been born on that property, many had lived and died there for 65 years since the Great Grandfather had bought it. All this through 3 Wars (Anglo Boer War, WWI, WWII) and the Great Depression, when people were so poor* that if you wanted food you grew it in the garden, as there was no money for essential items or luxuries.
The whole scenario was weird. Almost as if the family had just been holding the land for the Government to take.
*One of the stories told to me by my father to emphasise how poor people were during that era was that my Great Uncle who was a Fitter and Turner having no job or money during the time of the Great Depression or earlier climbed on a Train at Cape Town, travelled to Upington and walked from Upington to the Diamond Mines at Alexander Bay/Oranjemund - not sure of the distance - on the off chance of getting a job there.
People nowadays cannot comprehend how tough things were back then.
That when The Government said jump, you basically didn't complain, but asked how high.
Look at how many South Africans threw their lives away during the 2 Great Wars simply because the Government said it was your duty to do so.
Last edited:
Juggy
Executive Member
I think it's awesome, better late than never. They could quite easily sell off some of it to raise funds for farming and building. Property out there is worth a fortune.
Lets hope they can find the rest of their family and live happily ever after.
Lets hope they can find the rest of their family and live happily ever after.
One of the positive things coming out of the New South Africa.
Congrats to the Solomon Family.
Skeptik
Banned
They always leave the detail out. What were the Solomon family paid for their land before it was expropriated?
Will they pay the money back (at today's prices)?
Low cost housing/developments???
Scary ..
Will they pay the money back (at today's prices)?
Low cost housing/developments???
Scary ..
Municipal Value plus 30%.
This is what the heirs to my Great Grandfather's Property were offered if they didn't accept the slightly higher amount. Either that or the Provincial Authorities threatened to take the case before arbitration.
In the case of my Great Grandfather's Estate the Municipal value was based on 1945 figures. Need I tell you what was happening in 1945?
The properties (6 Lots) in question would be worth individually millions by today's standards.
But I see your point.
At that point in time the value was deemed correct by the Authorities and the people "accepted" it. The Solomon Family I take it were arguing that they were forcefully removed because of the Group Areas Act and the compensation was not enough?
Would be interesting to actually read the original papers as for all we know the early Solomon's from the 1960's may have jumped at the money offered?
In the case of the heirs to my Great Grandfather's Estate, they protested profusely.
K
kingrob
Guest
23000m in Constantia?! Instant millionaire status.
Skeptik
Banned
Constantia has some very affluent areas, but prices can be a lot less than people think. Certainly for 23 000m² (5.68 acres) - at least R2m. No house, just graves and a Mosque (how big I wonder)??
I still want to know if they will give the compensation back ... It must run into the 100,000s.
We had a fair portion of our land taken for road widening in the 70's. We had no option - in fact the council threatened to give us peanuts if we made a fuss. The amount we received is probably less than most people spend in a week on family groceries. Those were the days ... it affected everybody.
I still want to know if they will give the compensation back ... It must run into the 100,000s.
We had a fair portion of our land taken for road widening in the 70's. We had no option - in fact the council threatened to give us peanuts if we made a fuss. The amount we received is probably less than most people spend in a week on family groceries. Those were the days ... it affected everybody.
The Authorities had far reaching powers in those days.
Not only for the Coloured people in Cape Town, but the whites as well.
I wonder how many whites were successful in claiming land back that was expropriated from that era? That is if they even bothered to put in a claim?
In our case I know my Uncle on several occasions said we should put in a claim, but 1998 came and went in a flash and only recently, post the year 2000, also with the Access To Information Act a great help, have I found documentation that would have been substantial evidence for a Claim.
I think it was for the better anyway. The stress involved for my Father, Uncle and Family may have been too much and not worth it, if the restitution was only money. Money cannot replace land in so far as location, friends and family, a Family Home and fertile land for agriculture. Too many years have past and the damage was permanent.
I have a customer (Lady) that lives in Constantia who lost a great chunk of land for Road Reserve. Your story sounds similar Skeptik.