Donations
Bank account details
Eine Welt, Liga-Bank Augsburg
KTNR: 239097
BLZ: 75090300
IBAN: DE72 7509 0300 0000 2390 97
Township Langa
The workers’ housing estates, during apartheid called “township”, had been exclusively created for black working men from rural migration areas. One bedroom for three men each was planned, several rooms shared a simple eat-in kitchen. After the abolishment of apartheid, the population numbers in the townships exploded due to the arrival of entire families following their male relatives without causing corresponding spatial changes. To be precise: A single place to sleep, originally intended for one worker, now had to suffice for a whole family – usually for both parents and their numerous children! Consequently, much less than one square metre of living space was available for each resident – this is hardly more than the floor space occupied by a person standing up! The consequence is that people’s life primarily takes place on the streets. This lack of places to retreat increases the danger of slipping towards crime. Huge parts of these townships still rate among the most disastrous mass camps in the world.
Guga S´Thebe
The Guga S´Thebe cultural centre, which was constructed by architect Caren Smuts, is situated at the entrance to the Langa Township. With its service this facility manages to get children and adolescents, but also gown-ups and elderly people off the street – at least for a few hours. Through the conveyance of dance, music and art the institution tries to strengthen the self-esteem of the individual and their social non-violent interaction. One of the special projects is the extension of the orphanage in the Langa Township, where AIDS orphans have found far more than a roof over their heads: a home full of love and care and the chance of a future worth living for. The Dietiker `Charity Chair´ project supports the Guga St. Thebe cultural centre as well as the AIDS orphanage in the Langa Township, Cape Town, with the revenues generated from the chair auction.
