Definition:
Under the Black (or Natives) Land Act No. 27 of 1913 (commenced 19 June 1913) Black Africans were no longer be able to own, or even rent, land outside of designated reserves (which amounted to approximately 7% of South Africa's land, although the promise was made to increase the amount). The Cape was the only province excluded from the act as a result of the existing Black franchise rights which were enshrined in the South Africa Act. During the Apartheid era, the reserves were converted to Bantustans and later into 'independent' states within South Africa.
Sol Plaatje wrote that it made the Black "not actually a slave, but a pariah in the land of his birth.
Repealed by the Abolition of Racially Based Land Measures Act No 108 of 1991.
