University of Trento School in Social Sciences Doctoral Program in Sociology and Social Research XXV° Cycle Ph.D. Candidate: Federica Duca Advisor: Prof. Asher Colombo Co-Advisor: Prof. Ivor Chipkin Left outside or trapped in the visible and invisible gate. Insights into the continuities and discontinuities in the creation of good and just living in open and gated suburbs of Johannesburg. April 2015 Abstract Starting from the consideration that gated estates and complexes are increasingly becoming part of the urban, peri-urban and rural landscape of many societies undergoing transformation, the aim of this dissertation is to explore what difference it makes to live in an enclosed space in order to understand not only the choice of living in such environments, but also their spatial, social and political implications and manifestations. This work does so by adopting a relational perspective and by comparing two different neighbourhoods of Johannesburg, South Africa: a newly built gated golf estate (Eagle Canyon) and an old open suburb (Northcliff). In order to develop insights into the ways in which life in a gated community is related to the life outside, an ethnographic study of three years has been carried on in the gated golf estate and in the open suburb. This work argues that gated enclaves, internally organized and managed by specific institutions, not only provide the space in which the "good life" is lead, but most importantly set the standard and the terms of this good life and provide a system of justification for it. Putting in dialogue the two suburbs, this dissertation points out that gated estates provide the sace in which an escalation of belonging takes place. The novelty of the study lies in the discovery that the relationship between Northcliff and Eagle Canyon and then between Eagle Canyon and other gated estates is not simply of one between different urban phenomena but, in addition, is one of political scale. Northcliff is to the City what Eagle Canyon is to the nation. In other words, these respective communities instantiate, symbolically, different scales of political community. 2 Acknowledgments I wish to thank a number of people that have made this project possible and have supported me during the long process. I am grateful to my advisor Asher Colombo for guiding me and being supportive over the last four years. I spent most of this time in South Africa and Prof. Colombo and I have not had many chances to meet, however I must thank him for being encouraging of my fieldwork and for guiding me during the writing process. I also wish to thank my co-advisor Ivor Chipkin whom I have met in 2011 before starting my fieldwork. Prof. Chipkin has been a great supporter of my work, he has firstly made me feel at home introducing me to the Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI), of which he is executive director. He has helped me with institutional support when needed in Johannesburg and assisted firstly offering a space from which to work at PARI and then including me in the bigger “Emerging Communities Project”. The research team at PARI is lively and extremely engaging. I wish to thank Sarah Meny-Gibert for having been an excellent research manager, for being curious about my work and engaging with it, Mpho Mohapi and Darshana Bhana for always being available and Idah Makukule for asking me to “go along” with her while doing research in the informal settlement of Zandspruit, only 6 kilometres away from the lavish golf estate of Eagle Canyon where I have conducted fieldwork for one year. The examiners have provided meaningful comments and have helped me shape this dissertation in a more precise and significant way. Specifically, the comments have helped me understanding my position vis à vis luxurious estates and shape my own views on the relational perspective. The French Institute of South Africa (IFAS) has awarded me a research grant for conducting research in Johannesburg. I wish to thank IFAS for believing in the importance of this research. During these four years I have presented parts of this work at various conferences in South Africa and around the world. I particularly wish to thank the “Network on Private Urban Governance” for innovating the study on gated communities and making me part of this network. All of the presentations, workshops and conferences have been of great help for developing my work. Many thanks to PARI for inviting me to some of these events and for supporting my travels abroad. I also wish to thank Jackyn Cock at Wits University for being interested in my work and for encouraging me to develop some of the themes starting with the 3 constitution of a global network: “Golfing the Planet” of which I am the promoter. When I started this project I didn’t know what living in a gated, walled, contained and secured space meant and I thought it would not be difficult to adjust. Without me knowing, my first encounter with ethnography was in 1999, when I spent a year in Hong Kong during high school. It was an intercultural exchange program and the line of the program was to encourage accepting any cultural difference at school, in the city and with the host family. I didn’t know that what I was going to do was participant observation, and I didn’t know that the experience would be at the base of my passion for cities and metropolises. The division of Hong Kong, its colonial legacy and its patterns of segregation, its mega buildings and enclaves struck me to the extent that most of my work at University has gravitated around life (social, political and cultural) in the city. That experience made me believe that “living with a family” is the best way to conduct participant observation, and that it would not be too difficult to find someone that would open the doors of their home for me. The experience in Johannesburg on the contrary has been an extremely difficult and luckily I have been blessed with a great group of people that have supported my frustrations on the field first and during the writing process later. While in Johannesburg Sian Byrne has always been an exciting, warm, provoking and engaging friend. We shared many moments at her flat in Yeoville, which, overtime, has also become my home. While sitting at the balcony for long chats and eating sessions, Sian has challenged my views, my ideas, my stands in many different ways and has contributed greatly to my knowledge of South Africa. During my stay in Johannesburg, the Byrne family has in a way adopted me inviting me to their place along with Sian. Many thanks to Sue and Gavin Byrne for providing me with comfortable and cosy space in Johannesburg and at the farm. Miriam di Paola has always been there for me, understanding the difficulties of the fieldwork and opening the door of her home anytime I needed a “break”. I wish to thank Kingu Hamidu Kiula from the “parking” in Yeoville. The parking has been my main hangout while in Yeoville and the space in which I felt I could breathe fresh air after long days of observation. Kingu has contributed greatly to my knowledge of informal economy, ethnic enclaves, but most importantly he “taught” me how to navigate the neighbourhood only through talking and simply doing things together. Getting to know Yeoville has helped me contextualizing my own research and my own knowledge of the city. 4 I first stepped in South Africa in 2008 when I have lived in the township of Soshanguve. This experience has informed my future interest in gated communities and suburbs. Thshepo firstly introduced me to the township life, to its challenges and to the relationship between the township and the suburb. Part of this research indirectly started at that point. All along, I have always been in touch and benefited from great support from Beatrice Corvatta and Marina Macorovic and I am grateful I have been able to spend some time with them while writing this project back home. Beatrice provided me with beautiful writing retreat at her place in the countryside. Her affection, encouragement and warmth have really made the difference. After ten years away from home I have returned to Recanati in November 2013 to finalise writing this dissertation. This has been a daunting experience. After having had to adjust to many different places, I now had to adjust to life at home. My family has accepted such a long absence and has been extremely supportive all along. I particularly wish to express my gratitude to my grand mother who has always encouraged me and made me believe that I could make it. Her strength is of great admiration for me. Emiliano Polsonetti has been a constant presence in my life, agreed to spend his summer holidays in a cold wintery Johannesburg for three years, has followed this research daily via skype, has listened to every difficulty and helped me overcome challenging moments. We grew up together and this dissertation is also the product of our shared experiences. Finally, I wish to thank all the respondents, all the residents I have talked to formally and informally, the management of Eagle Canyon, the ward councillors, Jeff Gilmour from ARC for being so open and available. 5 TABLE OF CONTENT Introduction 14 1. Chapter One 28 Mapping the City: Eagle Canyon and Northcliff, a golf estate and a suburb in Johannesburg 1.1. Eagle Canyon: circa March 2011 29 1.2. Northcliff, the secret of Johannesburg: circa 41 December 2011 1.3.