Shanty huts sit next to clapped-out cars, as
children sprint along the dusty wasteland under the scorching sun.
Beyond the flimsy shacks lie ditches and
pools of filthy, stagnant water where mosquitoes breed.
These are the daily conditions endured by
families in South Africa's 'white squatter camps' where there is little food,
running water and no electricity.
While most white South Africans still land the plumb jobs and enjoy relative wealth, the number of poor whites has steadily increased in the past two decades.
Seeking to undo years of racial inequality -
when whites were almost guaranteed employment and housing under apartheid - the
ruling African National Congress (ANC) government introduced laws that promoted
employment for blacks and aimed to give them a greater share of the economy
This change, along with the global financial meltdown, has meant many white South Africans have fallen on hard times and are forced to live in slums.
Following the end of apartheid in 1994, many
unskilled white South Africans have enjoyed little sympathy from those who
believe they profited from the brutal regime.
More than 400,000 white South Africans have thought to live in poverty. The country's population is about 50 million.
Those living in squalid conditions are forced
to survive on around £28.99 a month.
The squatter camp in Munsieville, near
Johannesburg, is one of 80 across South Africa. It is built on the site of an
old dumping ground and is home to around 300 people, of which a quarter are
children.
There is no electricity, no running water
apart from a couple of standpipes, no secure structures and little food.
Houses are typically built with bare earth
floors, but frequent floods wash away the topsoil and leave decades-old waste
exposed.
Hospitals refuse residents care and those
living at the camp are regularly rebuffed by potential employers at job
interviews.
Henrik, 49, says his 'life is over' now he lives at the camp. He said: 'I'm 49 years old and I'm too old to get a job.
'I apply and as soon as they see my age, they
say "sorry, you are too old."
'I do what I can to survive, collecting scrap
metal or selling second clothes. But it is barely enough.
'Most kids here are happy. Some of them know
the situation they are in. I don't want to talk big about my kids but if I tell
them there isn't any money they accept it. But it is hard, I just want the best
for them.'
Arie, 56, is another resident at the camp.
She said: 'If you go to the hospital and say you are from Munsieville, they
won't help you.
'You will wait until the morning breaks and
then maybe they will help you. They are prejudiced against us.
'Everyone stands together and tries to help
each as much as they can. If you can help someone in any way, you try and do
it.
'That's the best thing about living here, it
makes it bearable. It's like living with your family staying here.'
Leigh Du Preez, who works for the South
African Family Relief Project (SAFRP) charity, said those at the camp have
little chance of finding a job.
He said: 'As soon as they read your
application and see you are from a white squatter camp, they turn you down.
It's very difficult to get a job if employers know you live in one.'
He also pointed out many of the people at the
township are under 20 and should not be discriminated against for crimes that
took place before they existed.
Leigh said: 'They were supposed to be born
into a free and fair South Africa. Does this look fair?'
Johan, 56, also lives at the camp and said it
is better than the previous one he was in.
He said: 'The last place I was at, the bloke
who was in charge of it had a lot of rules. You had to do this and you had to
do that. It wasn't good.
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