Dimbaza

Dimbaza
—  Town  —
Dimbaza Location in the Eastern Cape
Coordinates: 32°50′7″S 27°12′57″E / 32.83528°S 27.21583°E / -32.83528; 27.21583Coordinates: 32°50′7″S 27°12′57″E / 32.83528°S 27.21583°E / -32.83528; 27.21583
Country	South Africa
Province	Eastern Cape
District	Amatole
Municipality	Buffalo City
Area[1]
- Total	10.2 km2 (3.9 sq mi)
Elevation[2]	580 m (1,903 ft)
Population (2001)[1]
- Total	23,424
- Density	2,296.5/km2 (5,947.8/sq mi)
Time zone	SAST (UTC+2)
Postal code	5671
Area code(s)	040

Dimbaza is a town in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, located in the Buffalo City Local Municipality, 20 kilometres (12 mi) west of King William's Town on the R63 road. As of 2001, it had a population of 23,424.^[1]

It was created during the mid- and late 1960s in the former Ciskei homeland to house Black people who had been removed from "white" areas for living there "illegally".^{[citation needed]} The concrete houses consisted of two or three rooms; sanitation facilities were non-existent. The lucky individuals could obtain employment in King Williams Town, paying roughly a quarter of their gross income on transportation.^{[citation needed]}

In keeping with then standard South African government policy, infrastructure development was financed by the beer halls.^{[citation needed]}

Between the abject poverty, and active negligence by the South African government, the town became a symbol of apartheid, and the subject of the 1975 documentary Last Grave at Dimbaza.

The town's original name^{[clarification needed]} was changed, due to the inability of the Special Branch to pronounce it correctly.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Main Place 'Dimbaza'". Census 2001. http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/21412. Retrieved 1 April 2011. 
2. ^ Chief Directorate: National Geo-spatial Information (2002). 3227CC Dimbaza (Map). 1:50 000, South Africa Topographic (4th ed.). 

External links

• Pursuit magazine: April/May 2005
• Last Grave at Dimbaza