HOT TOPIC: WORLD

In the Shadowof a StadiumAS ONE SOUTH AFRICAN CITY PREPARES FOR THE WORLO CUP, A NEWSTAOIUM EXPOSES A OIVIOE BETWEEN THE HAVES ANO THE HAVE-NOTS

SOUTH y\FRICy\:FAST FVXCTSAREA:4Pl,444sqmi

POPULATION: 50,?00,000.Black Africans, ?9%; whites,9.6%; mixed-race, 8.9%,Indian/Asian, 2.5%

PER CAPITA GDP: $10,000

RELIGIONS: Christian, 80%;

none, 15%; other, 5%

LANGUAGES: English, Afrikaans,

I, Swazi, Sotho, others

'.Males, 8?%; females,

86%

LIFE EXPECTANCY: Males, 50years; females, 54 years

Words to Know

^^^^^(adj]: inherited fromthose who came before.

buying, or selling of productsand services.

22^En3^ffl/^"i- somethingrequiring expensive upkeepwhile providing little or no profit.

8 JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC/MAY 10, 2010

It is held onlyonce every fouryears. Soccerfans worldwide gocrazy for it. ThisJune, for the first

time, the World Cupwill kick off in anAfrican nation—SouthAfrica. For the peopleof Nelspruit (nels-PROO-it), this is not all good news.

Located in northeastern SouthAfrica, the Nelspruit area is hometo 600,000 people. Only 4 of the 64World Cup games are to be playedin the city. (The other games willbe played in eight cities acrossSouth Africa. See map, pp. Î2-13.]Yet a $137 million stadium hasbeen built for the occasion.

The arena's 18 supportingpylons reach skyward in the shapeof orange giraffes. At night, theireyeballs blink with flashes ofbewitching light. The people wholive nearby, proud as they are toco-host soccer's greatest event, alsowonder: How could there be moneyfor a stadium while many of themstill fetch water from dirty puddlesand live without electricity or toilets?

Nelspruit'sstadium underconstnictíon.

"Ripples of Confidence"The 2010 Worid Cup is meant

to display South Africa at its verybest: a modem, prosperous nationfriendly to commerce, tourists, anddemocratic ideals. Former PresidentThabo Mbeki (TAH-boh um-BEH-kee) suggested that the competitionwas a milestone for the entire conti-nent, "sending ripples of confidencefrom the Cape to Cairo."

Such boasts may well turn outto be true. South Africa has spentmore than $6 billion on stadiums,roads, airports, and other projects.But Nelspruit, in preparing for its6 hours of championship soccer, isinstead an example ofthe nation'sworst feature—its distressing

Continued on p. Í0 ^

A teenage boy fetcheswater near his homein the shadow ofNelspruit's brightlylit stadium. ManyftimJIies in the arealacit access to cleanwater andelectricity.

I

Children have been studyingin temporary classrooms(above) since their schoolswere razed for a new stadium.The stadium can be seen inthe photo at right.

inequality. Some economists callthe divide between the haves andthe have-nots here the worst in theworld. An epidemic of local cor-ruption adds to the trouble, oftenleading downtrodden people to riseup in anger.

Just ask Simon Magagula. Helives in a mud house accessible bya dirt road whose potholes deepenwith each rainfall. From his door-way it is a short jaunt to the newstadium. "Those who'll benefit fromthis are the wealthy who alreadyhave plenty in their hand," he said.Magagula spoke not in resentmentso much as with weariness.

He was right: Most of the moneymade from building the stadiumreportedly went to the corruptpoliticians and businesspeople whoalways appear when money andpower are involved.

"No point in trying to hide it.

there was a total collapse of goodgovernance, primarily around theWorld Cup," said Lassy Chiwayo,Nelspruit's mayor. Chiwayo wasinstalled as an emergency care-

Above: South Africa's economic divide isevident in the contrast between a luxuryhome (top} and a shantytown (bottom),where the green structure in theforeground serves as a communal toilet.

Simply acquiring the stadium siteseemed corrupt. The township per-suaded the owners of a huge tractof ancestral land to sell 173 acresfor 1 rand (about 13 cents). People

Look how we live. If you pour Weiter intoci cjUiss, you can see things moving inside.

taker in late 2008 after the previousmayor was forced out of office.

Independent Investigatorsfound that millions of dollars hadbeen misspent on big contracts.Their final report calls for criminalcharges against a local official andthe directors of three companiesmanaging the stadium project.

Bulldozing SchoolsWhen it comes to the World

Cup, Nelspruit seems to put itsworst foot forward repeatedly.

in the community objected, and ajudge canceled the deal. The even-tual price was about $] million.

"There has been nothing butduplicity [deceptive words], dou-ble-dealing, and double agendas,"said Richard Spoor, the lawyer whohandled the case. "And what willwe have after the World Cup isplayed? There's no team to occupythe stadium. It will be a whiteelephant. Politicians will use it tomake speeches."

An elementary school and a high

1 0 JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC/MAY 10, 2010

WIEB WATCH2010 FIFA World Cupfifa.com/worldcup

school sat on the purchased land.They were bulldozed in 2007, andthe students were transferred to hotand airless temporary classrooms.

Parents and their children repeat-edly staged protests. They blockedstreets, burned tires, and once eventorched a police car. The policescattered them with rubber bullets.This year, construction was startedto replace the demolished schools.

"The school problem made usfurious—that and the need forjobs," said Magagula. "Some peoplewere hired to work on the stadium,but not enough. We've been prom-ised a better life, but look how welive. If you pour water into a glass,you can see things moving inside."

Yet he loves soccer, the favoritesport of black South Africans. Hecannot wait for the World Cup tobegin. He could afford only oneticket for one game, an $18 seatspecially priced for the country'sresidents.

Nelspruit's arena is one of fivenew stadiums in cities across SouthAfrica, including some that are quitespectacular. It will host Hondurasversus Chile, Italy versus New Zea-land, Australia versus Serbia, andNorth Korea versus Ivory Coast.

"I chose the Italians,'" Magagulasaid proudly. "I don't really carewho wins. But whatever happens,I'll never forget it."

—Barry Bearakwith reporting by Sydney Masinga

The article from which this was adapted originallyappeared in The New York Times.

Think About It

1. Why do the people of Nelspruithave mixed emotions abouthosting World Cup matches?

2 . Why do you think parents andchildren were so outragedabout losing their schools?How would you have reacted?

South Africa Isa ParliamentaryDemocracy.South Africa changed dramaticallyin 1991, when its long-held systemof apartheid (racial segregation]ended. Black Africans—themajority ofthe population—wonthe right to vote. The Constitutionof 1996 established the currentsystem of government.

^ is elected bythe National Assembly to afive-year term. He or she maynot serve more than two terms.If the President believes thata bill passed by Parliament isunconstitutional, he or she cansend it back or refer it to theConstitutional Court. The Presidentappoints an Executive DeputyPresident and a Cabinet.

Jii is the legislativebranch. It consists of twochambers, the National Assemblyand the National Council ofProvinces. The National Assemblyhas 400 members elected tofive-year terms. Political partieswin seats based on their shareofthe vote. (Voters cast ballotsfor parties, not candidates.) TheNational Council of Provinces hasmore-limited powers. It has 90members, 10 from each province.

THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT

is South Africa's highest court. Itdeals exclusively with whetherlaws are constitutional. It has 11members. The President selectsthem from a list that a judicialcommission draws up. They servefor 12 to 15 years.

FOR COMPARISON, SEE THEU.S. GOVERNMENT PROFILE AT

scholastic.com/js/ourgovt.

JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC/MAY 10, 2010 1 1

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