Reclaiming memory, challenging white supremacy: the case for memorialising John Vorster square in addressing the legacy of violence in post-apartheid South Africa

Holomisa, Sesetu

Reclaiming memory, challenging white supremacy: the case for memorialising John Vorster square in addressing the legacy of violence in post-apartheid South Africa

Thesis / Dissertation

2026

Abstract

This thesis argues that the memorialisation of John Vorster Square (JVS) as a Site of Conscience through a transitional justice (TJ) framework holds the potential to confront the past and initiate critical conversations around challenging persistent structures of inequality. The study examines the history of JVS, detailing the documented accounts of torture and deaths of anti-apartheid activists. It explores the broader implications of preserving and recontextualising this site within the national memory landscape. Drawing inspiration from transformative Sites of Conscience, such as Constitution Hill and Argentina's ex-ESMA, this thesis adopts a transnational approach to memorialisation. It also examines the challenges and criticisms associated with symbolic reparations, including the non-systemic nature of change and the unpredictable outcomes. The thesis concludes by advocating for the memorialisation of JVS as a Site of Conscience, arguing that it can serve as a space for civic engagement, where citizens actively confront the history of atrocities and reflect on their enduring societal implications. This is in line with the notion that “It is a terrible, an inexorable, law that one cannot deny the humanity of another without diminishing one's own: in the face of one's victim, one sees oneself. Walk through the streets of [South Africa] and see what we, this nation, have become.