ORANIA - Until thirty years ago, white Afrikaners dominated South Africa, today they feel like a threatened minority. The monopoly on agricultural land is disappearing, their culture is under pressure and many feel unsafe in the big cities. More and more Afrikaners are turning their backs on the rainbow nation. In Orania, the country's most contested village, they want to preserve their identity.
More and more Afrikaners seem to want to come and live in Orania. In 2021, the village received 1225 applications, an increase of 35 per cent. 'We have never seen this before,' says Joost Strydom, who has lived in the village since childhood. The number of applications exceeds our capacity. If we could build houses faster, a lot more people would be living here by now.' However, these houses are only being built for and by white, Christian Afrikaners. South Africans of other cultural or ethnic backgrounds are not to be found here. Orania is necessary, because our culture and identity are under threat,' says Strydom.
Photo: ©Johannes De Bruycker
Alleen witte Afrikaners toegelaten, De Standaard Weekblad, 11/06/2022.
