The history of KwaMashu township

KwaMashu is a township that is situated approximately 16 kilometres north of Durban, South Africa. This township’s history stretches as far back as the late 1800’s and is linked with the Scottish sugarcane farmer and magnate Sir Marshall Campbell. Kwa in isiZulu means ‘place of’ and Mashu ‘the localized version of Marshall’ and so the township receives its name as a result of land ownership by the Scotsman. Marshall also introduced rickshaws in the year 1892; a controversial tourist attraction that is still ever present in Durban even up to the present day. In 1948, The Fagan Commission found that restrictions placed on black Africans residing in urban areas were too restrictive and possibly even detrimental as blacks still had to travel from surrounding areas in order to report for work. This commission while hailed as the most liberal of it’s time went ultimately opposed by the Apartheid government with additional legislation subsequently being rolled out. The original inhabitants of KwaMashu hailed from Cato-Manor, a working-class area just outside Durban locally known as Umkhumbane. It was here that black Africans used to reside alongside Indians and Coloureds alike. This was the case up until the introduction of new laws as part of policy change by the Apartheid government. These new laws went contrary to the findings of the Fagan Commission and drove South Africa towards an era of heightened segregation. A part of these new laws was the ‘The Group Areas Act’, the essence of which was the separation of races by way of residential designations. This meant that Indian, coloured and black communities were to live separately from each other and most especially separate from whites. This was in line with the apartheid government’s policy of racial separation. This law was one of many that existed alongside other laws with intentions to separate the races, some of which included ‘the Land Act of 1913’, ‘the Mixed Marriages Act of 1949’ and the ‘Immorality Amendment Act of 1950’. Other famous examples of The Group Areas Act include Sophiatown and District Six. Cato Manor was among many South African communities that fell victim to forced removals during apartheid. There was a fair bit of controversy in the formative stages of KwaMashu. Prior to the relocation of Cato Manor residents, a board known as the Cato Manor Native Advisory Board was consulted however some residents of Cato Manor who were deemed illegitimate were left out and ultimately ignored from the process. A competition was even held by local Durban newspaper the Daily News to name the township. Despite facing strong opposition, the name KwaMashu was the one chosen in spite of names such as ‘Mahlatanyane’ and ‘Mafukezela’ in honour of notable black stalwarts such as Mahlati and John L. Dube respectively.

Today KwaMashu is known as one of the biggest townships in Durban, it is made up of 13 informal settlements and approximately 9 informal settlements. 2019 marked 60 years since its establishment in 1959 and eThekwini Municipality’s Local History Museum held an event to mark the occasion.

Obed Mbatha who was a resident of Cato Manor and present during the relocation spoke at the event , he stated; “That was the start of difficult times in KwaMashu. We lived that way, with no transport to the city. We would catch buses coming from Ndwedwe from a place that was the police station, bus stop, charge office and court, all in one…”. In looking back at the forced removals, Mbatha reflects that the period was hurtful based on how he remembers life in Cato Manor. Reflecting on it as a time when the people of Cato Manor lived in harmony and were able to share with their neighbours.