Story 1: Chinese Wall Model
Comrades of the Have-nots outside the city convinced foreign political and financial institutions to impose sanctions on the Haves. This had such a detrimental effect on the Haves’ business undertakings that they were forced to negotiate with the Have-nots in order to survive.
The Have-nots, now in political power, initiate a new division of the city by building four giant walls running in a north-south direction. This new system links negative space outside the enclaves, such as green space and buffer zones, with positive space inside the ghetto. The new division creates a new conflict and makes the existing division obsolete. The five new districts of the city will start to investigate and resolve their inherited conflicts and possibly arrive at different resolutions. This process will be thoroughly documented and closely observed, and serve as a pilot project for future development models in other cities around the world.
On top of these walls is free space for the leisure and pleasure of the citizen. Walking from north to south, one sees the cityscapes of the enclaves, derelict green space, the buffer zone and the ghetto: one is witness to the landscape of apartheid as the most direct and physical manifestation of segregation and exclusion.
Climbing the walls requires a conscious decision to leave existing positions; the new perspective offers an overview of all contrasting conditions. The number of Haves entering the free space is recorded and registered as a gesture of respect towards the Have-nots and as a willingness to coexist. The more willingness the Haves exhibit, the more sanctions will be eased and the more foreign investment will be allowed. Haves try to be popular in order to secure their position in the future political and economic climate.
Comrades of the Have-nots outside the city convinced foreign political and financial institutions to impose sanctions on the Haves. This had such a detrimental effect on the Haves’ business undertakings that they were forced to negotiate with the Have-nots in order to survive.
The Have-nots, now in political power, initiate a new division of the city by building four giant walls running in a north-south direction. This new system links negative space outside the enclaves, such as green space and buffer zones, with positive space inside the ghetto. The new division creates a new conflict and makes the existing division obsolete. The five new districts of the city will start to investigate and resolve their inherited conflicts and possibly arrive at different resolutions. This process will be thoroughly documented and closely observed, and serve as a pilot project for future development models in other cities around the world.
On top of these walls is free space for the leisure and pleasure of the citizen. Walking from north to south, one sees the cityscapes of the enclaves, derelict green space, the buffer zone and the ghetto: one is witness to the landscape of apartheid as the most direct and physical manifestation of segregation and exclusion.
Climbing the walls requires a conscious decision to leave existing positions; the new perspective offers an overview of all contrasting conditions. The number of Haves entering the free space is recorded and registered as a gesture of respect towards the Have-nots and as a willingness to coexist. The more willingness the Haves exhibit, the more sanctions will be eased and the more foreign investment will be allowed. Haves try to be popular in order to secure their position in the future political and economic climate.
