The Bantu Authorities Act of 1951 established the creation of 10 different homelands, Bantustans, for the various ethnic groups within South Africa’s Black population. The same principle was applied to South-West Africa, now the country of Namibia, from 1968 until 1989 when South-West Africa was under South African administration. This concept of Bantustans quelled inter-tribal conflict and allowed a degree of self-government, but the primary objective was to reinforce the ruling government’s overall control without offering a true representative voice in shaping national policy by those living in the homelands. By 1986, only 39% of South Africa’s Black population lived in one of the 10 Bantustans. The South African government realized the failure of the separation policy and withdrew plans for developing additional homelands. The Bantustans were dismantled and reassigned or absorbed to provincial status in 1994.
