Ordinance 50
Quick Summary
Ordinance 50, enacted in South Africa in 1828, was a significant legal measure during the British occupation of the Cape. It aimed to address labor shortages by temporarily removing restrictions on the Khoi people. This allowed them greater freedom to choose employers, own land, and move within the colony.1
This ordinance was part of broader policy shifts in the Cape Colony. Earlier, Ordinance 49 (1828) had permitted Black laborers from east of the Keiskamma River to enter the colony for work, provided they had contracts and passes, marking the beginning of notorious pass laws. While Ordinance 50 offered temporary freedoms to the Khoi, the subsequent Masters and Servants Ordinance (1841) tightened control over African laborers through criminal penalties for contract breaches.12
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Southern AfricaChanges in the status of Africans” Ordinance 50 of 1828, which ensured Khoisan mobility on the labour market, caused an uproar; in 1834 slaves were finally emancipated. Despite their formal equality before the law, however, newly emancipated slaves received only modest protection, from the handful of mission stations, against exploitative and…
Read More” Ordinance 50 of 1828, which ensured Khoisan mobility on the labour market, caused an uproar; in 1834 slaves were finally emancipated. Despite their formal equality before the law, however, newly emancipated slaves received only modest protection, from the handful of mission stations, against exploitative and…
Read More
South AfricaBritish occupation of the CapeOrdinance 50 briefly ended the restrictions placed on the Khoe, including removing the requirement for passes, and allowed them to choose their employers, own land, and move more freely. Because an insufficient labor force still existed, Anglo-Boer armies (supported by Khoe, Tembu, Gcaleka, and Mpondo…
Read MoreOrdinance 50 briefly ended the restrictions placed on the Khoe, including removing the requirement for passes, and allowed them to choose their employers, own land, and move more freely. Because an insufficient labor force still existed, Anglo-Boer armies (supported by Khoe, Tembu, Gcaleka, and Mpondo…
Read More