Residential desegregation in two South African cities: A comparative study of Bloemfontein and Pietersburg

The abolition of the Group Areas Act in 1991 has, in the space of five years, contributed to major changes in the former apartheid cities of South Africa. However, the socio-political transformation that has taken place has been experienced differently-as can be seen, for example, in Bloemfontein and Pietersburg, the capitals of the Free State and the Northern Province respectively. Historic factors, locations and the new-found status of the two cities have influenced the desegregation process that has occurred. The spatial lay-out of Bloemfontein, a city with its own black township, differs sharply from that of Pietersburg, a city without a township during the apartheid era. This paper assesses desegregation in these two provincial capitals in post-apartheid South Africa and investigates residential desegregation patterns, grass-roots political changes (the outcomes of the local elections held in November 1994), and property values as a further indication of the differences that exist between these two cities.