Spatial Paradigms of Exclusion: Gated Communities and Post-Apartheid Inequality

Moekela, Valery and Mphambukeli, Thulisile and Makoni, Eric (2025) Spatial Paradigms of Exclusion: Gated Communities and Post-Apartheid Inequality. URBAN INNOVATION: TO BOLDLY GO WHERE NO CITIES HAVE GONE BEFORE. Medium sized cities and towns as a major arena of global urbanisation. Proceedings of REAL CORP 2025, 30th Intl. Conference on Urban Development, Regional Planning and Information Society. pp. 811-820. ISSN 2521-3938

Text (Spatial Paradigms of Exclusion: Gated Communities and Post-Apartheid Inequality) CORP2025_155.pdf - Published Version Download (342kB)

Abstract

Land ownership continues to be a potent symbol of social stratification and inequality in South Africa as it continued to be used as a tool of segregation, even in the post-apartheid era. This paper explores the impact that gated communities have on spatial transformation in the new democratic era separating the haves and the have-nots. In South Africa, the advent of democracy brought with it a new spatial paradigm in the field of urban planning known as gated communities. This paper argues that gated communities are not founded on racial discrimination, but do restrict and monitor the movement of individuals who are not allowed within these communities. This spatial paradigm emerges based on the preferences of a specific socioeconomic group and is seen by this study as a segregation instrument manifesting as economic apartheid that strengthens pre-existing prejudices. This study adopted a qualitative method using an exploratory design approach to highlight the spatial disintegration phenomenon promoted by gated communities. This approach enabled the study to identify the shortcomings of spatial planning policies and their limitations in terms of integrated planning, sustainability and inclusivity of our cities. The findings suggest that there is a form of continuous disintegration of settlements within the city of Johannesburg through constructed spatiality that may be an intended form of segregation. The study concludes that the constructed spatiality within Johannesburg continues to promote segregation, revealing a persistent and potentially deliberate form of urban disintegration.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	spatial transformation, gated communities, sustainability, spatial segregation, apartheid economy
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor H Social Sciences > HM Sociology H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races
Depositing User:	REAL CORP Administrator
Date Deposited:	16 May 2025 09:01
Last Modified:	16 May 2025 09:01
URI:	http://repository.corp.at/id/eprint/1162

Actions (login required)

View Item