Duncan Village

Duncan Village is a township in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.

It was named after the then Governor-General of the Union of South Africa, Sir Patrick Duncan, who oversaw the opening of what was called a "leasehold tenure area" in the East Bank location.

[2] To deal with the issue of overcrowding and poor hygiene in the township and surrounding areas, the East London Municipality created Mdantsane in 1962.

[3] In describing the government's attempt to move residents from Duncan Village to Mdantsane, one of the councillors interviewed by Patricia Ndhlovu for her research paper titled Understanding the local state, service delivery and protests in post-Apartheid South Africa: The case of Duncan Village and Bcmm, East London said, "For us it was an 'anti-removal struggle', we were supposed to be removed from this place in 1985; they made it worse in 1985.

[1] On 9 November 1952, 1500 residents of East London's locations attended a mass meeting at Bantu Square in Duncan Village.

But the 9 November meeting followed in the wake of rioting in Kimberley and Port Elizabeth, a ban on gatherings and the restriction of 52 Eastern Cape leaders in terms of the Riotous Assemblies and Suppression of Communism Acts.

The ANC Youth League President, Skei Gwentshe, himself restricted, obtained permission from the chief magistrate and the district commandant for a prayer meeting to protest the bannings.

Quinlan (also known as Sister Aidan) a medical doctor who had set up the St Peter Claver mission hospital in East London, was stoned to death and burnt beyond recognition.

[2] On 11 August 1985, following the funeral of murdered UDF leader Victoria Mxenge in Rayi village, returning mourners carried out arson attacks, and violence continued on the following days.