Involuntary Population Movement in South AfricaAuthor(s): David M. SmithSource: Area, Vol. 10, No. 2 (1978), pp. 87-88Published by: The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers)Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20001312 .

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Haggett's shape index 87

germane since only Kepler's 'regular tesselations ' were being examined in the study under discussion. For an irregular county (i), the shape index can clearly range over the internal 0 > Si > 1, quite irrespective of the number of contacts; the more interest ing issue is whether it does so range. The reasons for adopting the S-index in the original Brazilian study were, to judge by my research notes, a mixture of practicality and principle. First, the two relevant variables were either readily available from the Brazilian census (area A), or easily measured from maps (length of the major axis, L). Secondly, the alternative shape measures considered depended on two somewhat elusive variables (perimeter length and centroid) which were not only more difficult to measure, but whose measured value had been shown by Perkal, Mandelbrot,

Nystuen, and others to be either scale- or orientation-dependent. But if the S-index should continue to survive, I hope it will not be cited as the ' Haggett index' [sic]. I recall coming across this shape index in papers of 1920s vintage in the plant taxonomy literature, and by the 1930s Horton was certainly using the expression AIL2 in hydro logical studies under the term 'form factor' (Horton, 1932, p. 354). It may well have been used still earlier in other fields (such as physical anthropology) where spatial form was of interest.

References

Boots, B. N. (1977) 'Contact number properties in the study of cellular networks ', Geogrl. Anal. 9, 379-87

Horton, R. E. (1932) 'Drainage basin characteristics', Trans. Am. Geophys. Union 13, 350-61 Pedersen, P. 0. (1967) 'On the geometry of administrative areas', unpubl. MS, Univ. of

Copenhagen

Involuntary population movement in South Africa The policy of apartheid or ' separate development' in South Africa involves the creation of race-space homogeneity. All land is allocated for the exclusive occupation of one of the officially recognized race groups-the Africans (Blacks or Bantu),

Asians (mainly Indians), Coloureds and Whites. The national strategy is for the crea tion of ' Homelands ' or ' Bantustans ' for the Africans, leaving the majority of the country (about 86 % of the surface area) for the Whites. The Indian and Coloured people have no Homelands and are being ' encouraged ' to concentrate in certain designated towns. Within the cities, each race has its own strictly segregated ' Group Areas '.

The creation of this tidy racial geography necessitates the involuntary movement of large numbers of people. By the end of 1975 the Group Areas Act had required the resettlement of 465,393 people (305,739 Coloureds, 153,756 Asians and 5898 Whites); there remain 143,294 still to be moved (Horrell et al., 1977, pp. 160-1). By the time the job is completed, urban relocation will have affected 1 in 6 of the country's total

Coloured population, and about 1 in 3-5 of the Indians. The equivalent figure for Whites is 1 in 642.

The total number of Africans moved in the creation of Group Areas and Homelands is not known precisely, but it is generally estimated at well over one million. Smit and

Booysen (1977, p. 20) provide a few facts worth noting. From 1960 to 1970, 68,144 Africans (Blacks, in official parlance) were removed to the Homelands from so-called

' black spots' (places occupied by Africans in rural areas deemed to be ' white') and

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88 Involuntary population movement in South Africa

from ' badly located' Homeland areas; 275,000 Africans have been resettled since the population census of 1970. From 1968 to 1975, 171,259 Africans have been moved from 'white' urban areas to the Homelands. As Smit and Booysen (1977, p. 21) point out, ' since 1967 it has been official policy gradually to move non-productive Blacks (the aged, physically handicapped, etc.) from White urban areas to towns in the homelands', where they make no demands on the welfare services of ' white' South Africa. Some 175,000 African families (approximately one million people) still have to be moved in terms of the Homeland consolidation proposals of May 1975 (Smit and Booysen, 1977, p. 25). Yet even then, about half South Africa's African population would still be in 'white' areas: the figure was 8 2m. at the 1970 Census, or 53 5 % of all Africans.

Such facts as these seldom find their way onto a map-far less into geography books. However, an extraordinarily interesting map of involuntary population movement in South Africa has recently been compiled by Barbara Waite and published by the Black Sash organization, under the title of South Africa-a land divided against itself. It is printed in colour, with arrows indicating origin and destination of population

movements, and is heavily annotated with facts and figures concerning numbers of people relocated and some of the specific circumstances involved; the sources cited are predominantly Hansard (South Africa) and the national press. The scale is approxi

mately 1 cm to 20 km (1 in. to 28 m.) and the map (dimensions 125 cm by 75-4 cm) is suitable for wall display in the classroom. Although not drawn to the highest profes sional standards of clarity and accuracy, it is a very important document; indeed, it probably reveals more of the reality of spatial reorganization in South Africa than any other map in print. Copies can be ordered from The Black Sash, 56 Victory House, 34 Harrison Street, Johannesburg 2001, Republic of South Africa, price ?8.00.

References Horrell, M. et al. (1977) A survey of race relations in South Africa 1976 (Johannesburg) Smit, P. and Booysen, J. J. (1977) 'Urbanization in the homelands: a new dimension in the

urbanization process of the Black population of South Africa?', Univ. of Pretoria, Inst. Plural Stud. Monogr. Ser. 3

David M. Smith Queen Mary College, London

Union of Socialist Geographers At the 1978 IBG meeting in Hull two informal discussion sessions focused attention on the need to develop a structure to co-ordinate socialist geographical work. It was the decision of the second meeting to form a Union of Socialist Geographers in the

British Isles [sic!]. The purpose of the Union is to work for the radical restructuring of our societies in accord with the principles of social justice. As geographers and as people we will contribute to this process in two complementary ways: by organizing and working for radical change in our communities and by developing geographical theory to contribute to revolutionary struggle. Thus we subscribe to the principle: from each according to ability, to each according to need. We declare that the develop

ment of a humane, non-alienating society requires, as its most fundamental step, socialization of the ownership of production.

An interim caretaking committee has been established to co-ordinate communica tion. The subscription rate is: faculty ?2, students ?1, unemployed and marginalized ?0.50. Subscriptions and donations can be sent to Ian Cook, Dept of Social Studies, Liverpool Polytechnic, Walton House, Tithebarn Street, Liverpool. Members will receive copies of the North American Newsletter for this year. Correspondence and information should be addressed to Martin Brennan, King Alfred's College, Winchester.

Ian Cook

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