Witness the life of people in the townships of Cape Town, South Africa
A look at life in the townships of Cape Town, film 2009.
Contunico © ZDF Enterprises GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail © Nikolai Link/Dreamstime.com
Transcript
Cape Town - the place to be - a dreamy panorama view and lots of attractions. Tourism is booming in the city on the Cape. But there is a flip side to Cape Town: the townships, districts that are home to the poor. The bus station is the nodal point of everything. It's a bustling place where people come and go. Private vans transport people here in lieu of buses and trains. Sixteen passengers squeeze into a minibus. Here public transport means minitaxis packed to the gills.
Bulelani Futshane grew up here and knows about life in the townships. His shack is his refuge, the place he sat and revised to get his school leaving certificate. And he managed. He now has a job as a social worker. He's currently working with an HIV project for young people. Bulelani wants to inform them before they get infected with the virus. Nowhere else in the world is the HIV virus spreading as quickly as it is in the townships of South Africa. Music helps him escape. Bulelani can be happy with his lot, for he's better off than most people in his neighborhood. Most of his neighbours live in shanties and are starving and unemployed. After his own father died at a young age, Bulelani was raised by his foster father. Juda looked after him, helping him get through school and providing moral support. His Rasta locks are styled to be reminiscent of a lion's mane. For Rastas, letting their hair grow is symbolic of their unwavering faith and great wisdom.
Although Belulani is proud of his origins, he doesn't wish the hard-knock school of life in the townships on anyone. One day he wants his children to grow up in better conditions. There are well over a million people just like Bulelani who hope for a better future. A life that transcends rich and poor, black and white.
Bulelani Futshane grew up here and knows about life in the townships. His shack is his refuge, the place he sat and revised to get his school leaving certificate. And he managed. He now has a job as a social worker. He's currently working with an HIV project for young people. Bulelani wants to inform them before they get infected with the virus. Nowhere else in the world is the HIV virus spreading as quickly as it is in the townships of South Africa. Music helps him escape. Bulelani can be happy with his lot, for he's better off than most people in his neighborhood. Most of his neighbours live in shanties and are starving and unemployed. After his own father died at a young age, Bulelani was raised by his foster father. Juda looked after him, helping him get through school and providing moral support. His Rasta locks are styled to be reminiscent of a lion's mane. For Rastas, letting their hair grow is symbolic of their unwavering faith and great wisdom.
Although Belulani is proud of his origins, he doesn't wish the hard-knock school of life in the townships on anyone. One day he wants his children to grow up in better conditions. There are well over a million people just like Bulelani who hope for a better future. A life that transcends rich and poor, black and white.