Ciskei

Ciskei was a bantustan, or homeland, in South Africa created under the apartheid regime as part of its policy of separate development for Black South Africans. Located in the eastern part of what is now the Eastern Cape, it had a coastline along the Indian Ocean and was bordered by the Transkei to the north and west. The capital city was Bisho.

The homeland system designated Ciskei as a self-governing, and later independently “independent,” state for Xhosa-speaking people. Ciskei was first established in 1961 and was proclaimed independent in 1981, becoming the Republic of Ciskei. This independence was not broadly recognized internationally, and South Africa retained substantial influence over the territory. Lennox Sebe served as its president from 1981 until his ousting by a military coup led by Oupa Gqozo in 1990. In 1992, security forces killed protesters during the Bisho Massacre as Ciskei’s government faced mounting opposition.

With the end of apartheid and the transition to a democratic South Africa, the bantustan model was dismantled. In 1994, Ciskei was dissolved and reintegrated into South Africa as part of the Eastern Cape Province, ending its status as a separate political entity. The legacy of Ciskei includes the disruptions of forced removals, economic underdevelopment, and the political dynamics of the transition from apartheid to democracy, which affected many residents who had lived under the homeland system for decades.