FUERZA COMERCIAL

Communities per se do not create records. Individuals, families and the organisations that represent them are the ones that generate community

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records. Therefore this study set out to investigate the Portuguese community-based organisations in Gauteng, since these are the creators of a primary source of community records, and thus a key resource for potential archival materials that may assist in preserving the history and experiences of the community.

Besides family, close friends and the church, in order to ease their adaptation to their adoptive country and to maintain a sense of community identity, the Portuguese have established an array of community-based organisations, since the early 20th century. Rocha-Trindade (1988:334) elaborates by explaining that, although emigrants in general, including the Portuguese in South Africa, seek physical locations such as neighbourhoods and cities that have larger numbers of existing members of their own community when settling in their host country, in order to aid in their adaptation, they also form groups to support one another emotionally, socially and financially.

These groups tend to occur spontaneously yet, with time, they often recognise the need to formalise their existence. These groups initially originate to strengthen and expand family and friendship ties within the community, thus creating a larger social network where people meet, make contacts, exchange ideas and interact. Some of these informal groups, when becoming formal, continue to play this role by organising social events, holding folklore dances, wedding parties, and so on. On the other hand, some groups may originate in an informal manner, but if the members of the group have a dominant characteristic or interest they often – especially on becoming a formal organisation – consecrate that interest. For example, a group that is mostly male that gets together informally might eventually create a community-based sports club, while an informal group that is mostly female may create a formal women’s organisation that focuses on the welfare of the women of their community.

Rocha-Trindade (1988:347) also notes that these community organisations have played a vital role in maintaining a community identity and have assisted in minimising the dilution of the community, especially when it comes to second-and-third-generation community members. These organisations

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include welfare associations; cultural, social, recreational and sports associations; women’s groups; youth groups; and coordinating bodies. The oldest Portuguese community organisation in South Africa was the now defunct Associacao da Colonia Portuguesa, which was founded in 1938 in Johannesburg. More recently, an overarching organisation was formed, namely the Federacao das Associacoes Portuguesas da Africa do Sul. Lately, online organisations – such as the Portuguese Forum – have also been created, which help Portuguese individuals stay in touch with one another and with events and developments within the community and broader South African society.

These organisations are active in the Portuguese community all over South Africa, but especially in the Gauteng area, including Johannesburg, Pretoria, Alberton and Benoni. They provide a space where Portuguese people can get together and make contacts. On these occasions, Portuguese music and sports games take place, cultural activities are encouraged such as concerts and folklore dances, and Portuguese events are organised. These organisations act to further a variety of aspects of Portuguese community life in South Africa, and often exist to contribute to the welfare or wellbeing of the Portuguese community. Each has its own focus. For instance, some of these organisations were established according to the geographical or regional origins of their members, such as organisations catering for mainly the Portuguese from Madeira, for example, Casa da Madeira; others had a recreational or sports focus such as Uniao Cultural, Recreativa e Desportiva, while others have had a cultural focus such as the Nucleo de Arte e Cultura.

Many of the originally Gauteng-based organisations, like the Portuguese Welfare Society and the Portuguese Women’s League have branched out to other cities in South Africa, with offices in Cape Town and Durban.

The online portal to Portuguese organisations in South Africa (www.consuladovirtual.pt/c/portal/) lists more than 60 community organisations. It should be noted, however, that a number of these listed organisations have ceased to exist. This was determined by the researcher who, after repeated efforts to contact these organisations (through email,

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telephone, the community media and through personal contacts), subsequently ascertained that approximately only 35 of these organisations are still active, with 25 of these being in the Gauteng area. The closure of these community organisations, and the implications thereof, is further analysed and interpreted in chapters six and seven.

2.3.1 Community-based organisations selected for the study

The following Portuguese community-based organisations in Gauteng were chosen for the purpose of this study:

• Federacao das Associacoes Portuguesas da Africa do Sul – Federation of Portuguese Associations of South Africa (FAPRAS) – Johannesburg

• Lusito Portuguese Association for the Challenged (O Lusito School) – Johannesburg

• Núcleo Sportinguista da África do Sul – Sporting Nucleus of South Africa – Johannesburg

• Academia do Bacalhau (Academia Mae) The Bacalhau Academy (The Mother Academy) – Johannesburg

• Federação do Folclore Português da África Do Sul (Raízes do Nosso Povo) – Federation of Portuguese Folklore of South Africa (Roots of our People) – Johannesburg

• O Seculo de Joanesburgo The Seculo of Johannesburg Newspaper – Johannesburg

• Sociedade Portuguesa de Beneficência – Portuguese Welfare Society of South Africa – Johannesburg

• Liga da Mulher Portuguesa na África do Sul – Portuguese Women’s League of South Africa – Johannesburg

• Nucleo de Arte e Cultura – Centre of Art and Culture – Johannesburg

• Uniao Cultural, Recreativa e Desportiva Portuguesa – Portuguese

Cultural, Recreational and Sports Union – Johannesburg

• Associacao da Comunidade Portuguesa de Pretoria (ACPP) Association of the Portuguese Community of Pretoria – Pretoria

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• Associação de Beneficiência "Os Lusíadas" – Welfare Association

“The Lusiadas” – Pretoria

• Clube Sport Marítimo – Maritime Sports Club – Pretoria

• Sporting Clube de Pretoria – Sporting Club of Pretoria – Pretoria

• Academia do Bacalhau – The Academy of the Bacalhau – Pretoria

• Casa Social da Madeira – Social Club of Madeira – Pretoria

• Casa da Madeira – Madeira House – Alberton

• Forum Portugues e a Voz Portuguesa – Portuguese Forum and the Portuguese Voice – Benoni

• Associação Portuguesa de Futebol, Cultura e Recreio – Portuguese Association of Soccer, Culture and Recreation – Vanderbijlpark

In total 19 organisations from Gauteng were selected for the study. Each of these organisations is well established, and they have a long enough standing to have made a significant impact on the community. Another main reason for the choice of these selected community organisations was that as the larger long-standing organisations with established structures, staff and facilities, these were more likely to have created a significant number of records and therefore may hold a substantial amount of potential archival materials. The selection of the population for this study is described in depth in chapter five on the research methodology for this study. These community organisations, as the main study population, are also discussed in chapter five, of this thesis (section 5.4.3 – Population and Sampling), and are also further examined in chapter six of this study, which explores the empirical findings concerning these organisations and the records they create.