Fordsburg Square in Fordsburg is a thriving square that is the site of a flea market was recently known for being run-down. This square in Johannesburg is the location of a battle between striking miners and the South African police, army and air force.
12-571: The Oriental Plaza , known locally as the Plaza is a large shopping centre and tourist attraction in Fordsburg , a suburb of Johannesburg , South Africa . Consisting of multiple connected malls, it was created for Indian traders who were forcibly removed from nearby Fietas by the apartheid government. Fourteenth Street in Fietas was a thriving business node, with shops owned by Indian businessmen. However,
24-518: A Kosher butchery , chevra kadisha , welfare organisations and Bet midrash . Fordsburg was the site of a miners strike by Afrikaner nationalists and many Communists. Mine bosses insisted on using African labour in the mines. White workers opposed this policy, and Smuts called in the troops and airforce. This strike is also known as the Rand Rebellion . A plaque in Fordsburg Square records
36-447: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Fordsburg Square Fordsburg Square is the site of a flea market that was known for being run-down. The Rand Rebellion against the powers of law and order ended here on the 14 March 1922. The uprising came out of a strike of black gold miners that started on `1 January 1922 in response to five shilling wage cut per shift. The White workers joined them ten days later because
48-547: Is a major attraction in Fordsburg. The suburb was portrayed in the 2012 film Material , which highlighted some of the cultural, racial and religious issues still facing South Africa's post-apartheid society From the earliest days of Johannesburg, the suburb housed a large Jewish community - with the Fordsburg/Mayfair Hebrew Congregation established in 1893 [1] - as well as associated institutions such as
60-509: Is also complex of shops in Marabastad , Pretoria (Asiatic Bazaar) that shares a similar history to the Oriental Plaza. This article about a shopping mall is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Johannesburg -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Fordsburg Fordsburg is a suburb of Johannesburg , South Africa . It
72-566: Is located in Region F of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality . Fordsburg is a residential suburb, although housing numerous shops and factories. Today, Fordsburg is a major centre of Indian and Pakistani culture, with a large number of halal restaurants. The Oriental Plaza , located in Fordsburg, was created by the Apartheid government as a large shopping centre for Indian-owned shops, and
84-523: The 15 March the army was called to bombard the Fordsburg square which was deemed the stronghold of the rebels. By this time the rebels had dug substantial World War I trenches across the square. Even the South African Air Force was called to bomb this square but they hit the nearby Mint Road Presbyterian Church . One of the buildings that offered protection to the rebels was the municipal toilets and these are still standing and in use. In 2013
96-567: The apartheid government insisted, against objections by officials of the Johannesburg City Council, that the area would be "white" under the Group Areas Act . Initially all traders were to be removed to Lenasia , however, a plan was devised by the government's Department of Community Development, and the council, resulted in the development of the Oriental Plaza as a large shopping centre in Fordsburg. Development began in 1971, and it
108-416: The owners of the mine had decided to cut costs by employing (cheaper) more black miners instead of the existing white workers. The workers did not just withdraw their labour but the a portion of the 20,000 white workers and the 180,000 black miners took over areas of Johannesburg and they were in control of Benoni , Brakpan suburbs of Fordsburg and Jeppe . The strike had become an open rebellion and on
120-579: The people who were killed there in the last battle of the rebellion. Writer Herman Charles Bosman and playwright Athol Fugard , as well as anti-apartheid activists such as Yusuf Dadoo , GM Naiker and Nelson Mandela spent time in Fordsburg. "In 1987, writer/composer Mbongeni Ngema rehearsed his new musical Sarafina! there, in preparation for a run at the Market Theatre and then Lincoln Center Theater in New York. This Johannesburg -related article
132-468: Was completed in 1975, with the earliest merchants taking occupation in 1974. The compensation paid to Indian merchants who were evicted from businesses throughout Johannesburg was inadequate, however they were pressured into moving into the plaza. Café (convenience store) owners and general dealers were forced to create shops that sold goods which appealed to white customers, and to compete with merchants who were more experienced in selling those lines. Business
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#1732848696172144-542: Was initially tightly controlled by the department, and shops were not allowed to merge. By the 1980s, restrictions eased, and owners were able to buy their premises. Red Square , a political meeting place in the 1940s and 1950s is now covered by Car Park 4 and the South Mall of the Oriental Plaza. The Plaza features in the 2012 movie Material , starring Riaad Moosa . There is an Oriental Plaza in Ferndale , Randburg . There
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