Johannesburg

==History==
{{main|History of Johannesburg|Timeline of Johannesburg}}
The region surrounding Johannesburg was originally inhabited by [[San people|San]] hunter-gatherers who used stone tools. There is evidence that they lived there up to ten centuries ago.<ref>{{cite web |title=Melville Koppies: Ancient History |url=http://mk.org.za/mkhist1.htm |website=mk.org.za |access-date=20 July 2021 |archive-date=15 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315061153/http://www.mk.org.za/mkhist1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Stone-walled ruins of Sotho–Tswana towns and villages are scattered around the parts of the former [[South African Republic|Transvaal]] in which Johannesburg is situated.<ref>{{citation |last=Mason |first=Revil |title=Origins of Black People of Johannesburg and the Southern Western Central Transvaal, AD 300-1880 |number=Occasional Paper No. 16 |publisher=Archeological Research Unit (University of the Witwatersrand) |date=1986}}</ref>

By the mid-18th century, the broader region was largely settled by various [[Sotho–Tswana]] communities (one linguistic branch of Bantu-speakers), whose villages, towns, chiefdoms and kingdoms stretched from the [[Bechuanaland Protectorate]] (what is now [[Botswana]]) in the west,<ref>{{cite news |title=Botswana profile |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13041658 |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=9 August 2012 |access-date=17 December 2020 |archive-date=11 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210211052647/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13041658 |url-status=live }}</ref> to present day [[Lesotho]] in the south,<ref>{{cite book |title=Historical Dictionary of the British Empire |editor-first1=James S. |editor-last1=Olson |editor-first2=Robert S. |editor-last2=Shadle |publisher=Greenwood Press |year=1996 |page=118 |isbn=0-313-27917-9}}</ref> to the present day [[Northern Sotho language|Pedi]] areas of the [[Limpopo|Limpopo Province]]. More specifically, the stone-walled ruins of [[Sotho–Tswana]] towns and villages are scattered around the parts of the former Transvaal province in which Johannesburg is situated.

Many Sotho–Tswana towns and villages in the areas around Johannesburg were destroyed and their people driven away during the wars emanating from [[Zulu Kingdom|Zululand]] during the late 18th and early 19th centuries (the [[mfecane]] or difaqane wars),{{citation needed|date=February 2023}} and as a result, an offshoot of the Zulu kingdom, the [[Ndebele people (Zimbabwe)|Ndebele]] (often referred to as the Matabele, the name given them by the local Sotho–Tswana), set up a kingdom to the northwest of Johannesburg around modern-day Rustenburg.

=== Gold rush and naming of the city ===
{{main|Witwatersrand Gold Rush}}
[[File:langlaagte.jpg|thumb|left|The Langlaagte farm near [[Paarlshoop]], on the [[Witwatersrand]] – site of the first discovery of gold in 1886.]]
[[File:Ferreira's Gold Mine in 1886.jpg|thumb|left|[[Ferreirasdorp]] gold mine in 1886, the oldest part of Johannesburg<ref name="Yap1996">{{cite book |author=Melanie Yap |title=Colour, Confusion and Concessions: The History of the Chinese in South Africa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_ca9nqe6PRoC&pg=PA84 |access-date=2013-05-07 |year=1996 |publisher=Hong Kong University Press |isbn=978-962-209-424-6 |page=84}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Chinatown Precinct Plan |url=http://www.joburg-archive.co.za/2011/inner_city/chinatown_precinct_plan2009.pdf |publisher=City of Johannesburg |access-date=10 May 2013 |quote=The oldest part of Johannesburg was first known as Ferreira's Camp and later Ferreiradorp. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304063523/http://www.joburg-archive.co.za/2011/inner_city/chinatown_precinct_plan2009.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref> and where the first gold diggers initially settled.<ref name=westgate>{{cite web |title=Westgate Station Precinct Spatial Development Framework and Implementation Plan |url=http://www.joburg-archive.co.za/2011/inner_city/westgate/sdf_plan_analysis_heritage_assets.pdf |publisher=City of Johannesburg (Archive) |access-date=7 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185711/http://www.joburg-archive.co.za/2011/inner_city/westgate/sdf_plan_analysis_heritage_assets.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref>]]

The main Witwatersrand gold reef was discovered in June 1884 on the farm Vogelstruisfontein by [[Jan Gerritse Bantjes (son)|Jan Gerritse Bantjes]], son of [[Jan Bantjes]], this triggered the [[Witwatersrand Gold Rush]] and the founding of Johannesburg in 1886. The discovery of gold rapidly attracted people to the area, making necessary a name and governmental organisation for the area. Jan, Johan and Johannes were common male names among the Dutch of that time; two men involved in surveying the area for the best location of the city, Christian Johannes Joubert and Johann Rissik, are considered the source of the name by some. Johannes Meyer, the first government official in the area is another possibility. Precise records for the choice of name were lost.<ref name=Joburg>{{cite web |url=http://www.joburg.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&id=275&Itemid=51 |title=How was Johannesburg named? |publisher=Official Website of the City of Johannesburg |year=2015 |access-date=17 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150417124059/http://www.joburg.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&id=275&Itemid=51 |archive-date=17 April 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Within ten years, the city of Johannesburg included 100,000 people.<ref name="ReidLane2004"/>

In September 1884, the Struben brothers discovered the Confidence Reef on the farm Wilgespruit near present-day Roodepoort, which further boosted excitement over gold prospects.<ref name="DGJ01">{{Cite book |title=A Concise Historical Dictionary of Greater Johannesburg |last1=Musiker |first1=Naomi |last2=Musiker |first2=Reuben |publisher=Francolin |year=2000 |isbn=978-1868590711 |location=Cape Town}}</ref>{{rp|254}} The first gold to be crushed on the Witwatersrand was the gold-bearing rock from the Bantjes mine crushed using the Struben brothers stamp machine. News of the discovery soon reached Kimberley and directors Cecil Rhodes and Sir Joseph Robinson rode up to investigate the rumours for themselves. They were guided to the Bantjes camp with its tents strung out over several kilometres and stayed with Bantjes for two nights.{{Citation needed|date=June 2016}}

In 1884, they purchased the first pure refined gold from Bantjes for £3,000. Incidentally, Bantjes had from 1881 been operating the Kromdraai Gold Mine in the Cradle of Humankind together with his partner Johannes Stephanus Minnaar where they first discovered gold in 1881, and which also offered another kind of discovery—the early ancestors of all mankind.{{citation needed|date=April 2015}} Some report Australian George Harrison as the first to make a claim for gold in the area that became Johannesburg, as he found gold on a farm in July 1886. He did not remain in the area.<ref name="George Harrison">{{cite web |url=http://www.travelhouseuk.co.uk/news/travel-insight/johannesburg-the-city-built-on-gold.htm |title=Johannesburg: The City Built on Gold |author=Victor Hunt |publisher=Travelhouse UK |date=7 December 2013 |access-date=16 September 2014 |archive-date=14 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140914050649/http://www.travelhouseuk.co.uk/news/travel-insight/johannesburg-the-city-built-on-gold.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

Gold was earlier discovered some {{convert|400|km|0|abbr=off}} to the east of present-day Johannesburg in [[Barberton, South Africa|Barberton]]. [[Prospecting|Gold prospectors]] soon discovered the richer gold reefs of the [[Witwatersrand]] offered by Bantjes. The original miners' camp, under the informal leadership of Col [[Ignatius Ferreira]], was located in the Fordsburg dip, possibly because water was available there, and because of the site's proximity to the diggings. Following the establishment of Johannesburg, the area was taken over by the Transvaal government who had it surveyed and named it Ferreira's Township, today the suburb of [[Ferreirasdorp]]. The first settlement at Ferreira's Camp was established as a tented camp and which soon reached a population of 3,000 by 1887.<ref name="ReidLane2004">{{cite book |author1=Andrew M. Reid |author2=Paul J. Lane |title=African Historical Archaeologies |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T3PUSDyy4vQC&pg=PA347 |access-date=7 May 2013 |year=2004 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0-306-47996-0 |page=347 |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902010158/https://books.google.com/books?id=T3PUSDyy4vQC&pg=PA347 |url-status=live }}</ref> The government took over the camp, surveyed it and named it Ferreira's Township.<ref name="Leyds1964">{{cite book |author=Gerald Anton Leyds |title=A History of Johannesburg: The Early Years |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mukQAQAAIAAJ |access-date=7 May 2013 |year=1964 |publisher=Nasionale Boekhandel Beperk |pages=(from snippet view) |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902010207/https://books.google.com/books?id=mukQAQAAIAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> By 1896, Johannesburg was established as a city of over 100,000 inhabitants, one of the fastest growth cities ever.<ref name="ReidLane2004"/>

Mines near Johannesburg are among the deepest in the world, with some as deep as {{Convert|4000|m}}.<ref>{{cite book |author=Geological Society of London |title=Mineral Deposits and Earth Evolution |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7wW-y9jT3NMC&q=golden+arc+welkom&pg=PA31 |year=2005 |publisher=Geological Society of London |page=31 |isbn=9781862391826 |access-date=18 October 2020 |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902010209/https://books.google.com/books?id=7wW-y9jT3NMC&q=golden+arc+welkom&pg=PA31 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Rapid growth, Jameson Raid and the Second Boer War ===
[[File:SA1899 pg038 Johannesburg in 1889.jpg|thumb|Johannesburg in 1889]]
[[File:SA1899_pg268_Commissioner_Street,_Johannesburg.jpg|thumb|[[Commissioner Street (Johannesburg)|Commissioner Street]] in 1895]]
Like many late 19th-century mining towns, Johannesburg was a rough and disorganised place, populated by white miners from all continents, African tribesmen were recruited to perform unskilled mine work, African women beer brewers cooked for and sold beer to the black migrant workers, a very large number of European prostitutes, gangsters, impoverished Afrikaners, tradesmen, and the "[[Laundry#South Africa|AmaWasha]]", Zulu men who surprisingly dominated laundry work.<ref>{{cite book |first=Charles |last=van Onselen |title=New Nineveh and New Babylon}}</ref> As the value of control of the land increased, tensions developed between the [[Boer]]–dominated Transvaal government in Pretoria and the British, culminating in the [[Jameson Raid]] that ended in fiasco at [[Doornkop]] in January 1896. The [[Second Boer War]] (1899–1902) saw British forces under Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts, occupy the city on 30 May 1900 after a series of battles to the south-west of its then-limits, near present-day Krugersdorp.{{citation needed|date=August 2015}}

Fighting took place at the Gatsrand Pass (near Zakariyya Park) on 27 May, north of Vanwyksrust—today's Nancefield, [[Eldorado Park, Gauteng|Eldorado Park]] and Naturena—the next day, culminating in a mass infantry attack on what is now the waterworks ridge in Chiawelo and Senaoane on 29 May.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=401&func=select&id=5 |title=Battle for Johannesburg |access-date=17 April 2015 |archive-date=23 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923231101/http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=401&func=select&id=5 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.defenceweb.co.za/ebooks/0%202009may27%20Two%20Battles%20for%20Johannesburg%20_final%20draft_.pdf |title=Hidden in Plain Sight: Johannesburg's Battlefields |author=Engelbrecht, Leon |date=27 May 2009 |access-date=17 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150417133321/http://www.defenceweb.co.za/ebooks/0%202009may27%20Two%20Battles%20for%20Johannesburg%20_final%20draft_.pdf |archive-date=17 April 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

During the Boer war, many African mineworkers left Johannesburg creating a labour shortage, which the mines ameliorated by bringing in labourers from China, especially southern China. After the war, they were replaced by black workers, but many Chinese stayed on, creating Johannesburg's Chinese community, which during the apartheid era, was not legally classified as "Asian", but as "Coloured". The population in 1904 was 155,642, of whom 83,363 were [[White people|whites]].<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911 |wstitle=Johannesburg |volume=19 |page=432}}</ref>

=== Post-Union history ===
[[File:Johannesburg-c1910.jpg|thumb|Pritchard Street c. 1910]]
In 1917, Johannesburg became the headquarters of the [[Anglo American plc|Anglo-American Corporation]] founded by [[Ernest Oppenheimer]] which ultimately became one of the world's largest corporations, dominating both gold-mining and diamond-mining in South Africa. Major building developments took place in the 1930s, after South Africa went off the gold standard.{{Citation needed|date=September 2016}} In the late 1940s and early 1950s, [[Hillbrow]] went high-rise. In the 1950s and early 1960s, the apartheid government constructed the massive agglomeration of townships that became known as [[Soweto]]. New freeways encouraged massive sub[[urban sprawl]] to the north of the city.{{Citation needed|date=September 2016}} In the late 1960s and early 1970s, tower blocks (including the [[Carlton Centre]] and the [[Southern Life Centre]]) filled the skyline of the central business district.

Under the system of ''apartheid'' (Afrikaans for "apartness", or "separate development" although the system was founded by the British), a comprehensive system of racial separation was imposed upon South Africa starting in 1948. For its growth, the economy of Johannesburg depended upon hundreds of thousands of skilled white workers imported from Europe and semi- and un-skilled black workers imported from other parts of Southern Africa. Though they worked together they were forced by the government to live separately. Work was considered to be an exception to ''apartheid'' in order to keep Johannesburg functioning as South Africa's economic capital.<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 86">Brogan, Patrick ''The fighting never stopped: a comprehensive guide to world conflicts since 1945'', New York: Vintage Books, 1989 page 86.</ref>
[[File:Stuttafords_Johannesburg_1957.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Stuttafords]] department stores in Johannesburg in 1957]]

In the 1950s, the government began a policy of building townships for black families (prior to this unskilled workers were asked to work on "single status" in male-only hostels at the mines and had to commute to see their families in whatever province they originated) outside of Johannesburg to provide workers for Johannesburg.<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 86"/> [[Soweto]], a township founded for black workers coming to work in the gold mines of Johannesburg, was intended to house 50,000 people, but soon was the home of ten times that number as thousands of unemployed rural blacks came to Johannesburg for employment and an income to send back to their villages.<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 92">Brogan, Patrick ''The fighting never stopped: a comprehensive guide to world conflicts since 1945'', New York: Vintage Books, 1989 page 92.</ref> It was estimated that in 1989, the population of Soweto was equal to that of Johannesburg, if not greater.<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 92"/>

In March 1960, Johannesburg witnessed widespread demonstrations against ''apartheid'' in response to the [[Sharpeville massacre]].<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 80">Brogan, Patrick ''The fighting never stopped: a comprehensive guide to world conflicts since 1945'', New York: Vintage Books, 1989 page 80.</ref> On 11 July 1963, the [[South African Police]] raided a house in the Johannesburg suburb of [[Rivonia]] where nine members of the banned [[African National Congress]] (ANC) were arrested on charges of planning sabotage. Their arrest led to the famous [[Rivonia Trial]].<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 92"/> The nine arrested included one Indo-South African, one coloured, two whites and five blacks, one of whom was the future president [[Nelson Mandela]].<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 91">Brogan, Patrick ''The fighting never stopped: a comprehensive guide to world conflicts since 1945'', New York: Vintage Books, 1989 page 91.</ref> At their trial, the accused freely admitted that they were guilty of what they were charged with, namely of planning to blow up the hydro-electric system of Johannesburg to shut down the gold mines, but Mandela argued to the court that the ANC had tried non-violent resistance to ''apartheid'' and failed, leaving him with no other choice.<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 91"/> The trial made Mandela into a national figure and a symbol of resistance to ''apartheid''.<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 91"/>
[[File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Straatbeeld in Johannesburg TMnr 10004282.jpg|thumb|Street scene in Johannesburg in 1970]]

On 16 June 1976, demonstrations broke out in Soweto over a government decree that black school-children be educated in Afrikaans instead of English, and after the police fired on the demonstrations, rioting against ''apartheid'' began in Soweto and spread into the greater Johannesburg area.<ref>Brogan, Patrick ''The fighting never stopped: a comprehensive guide to world conflicts since 1945'', New York: Vintage Books, 1989 page 93.</ref> About 575 people, the majority of whom were black, were killed in the [[Soweto uprising]] of 1976.<ref name="Brogan, Patrick page 80"/> Between 1984 and 1986, South Africa was in turmoil as a series of nationwide protests, strikes and riots took place against ''apartheid'', and the black townships around Johannesburg were scenes of some of the fiercest struggles between the police and anti-''apartheid'' demonstrators.<ref>Brogan, Patrick ''The fighting never stopped: a comprehensive guide to world conflicts since 1945'', New York: Vintage Books, 1989 page 100.</ref>

The central area of the city underwent something of a decline in the 1980s and 1990s, due to the high crime rate and when property speculators directed large amounts of capital into suburban shopping malls, decentralised office parks, and entertainment centres. [[Sandton City]] was opened in 1973, followed by Rosebank Mall in 1976, and [[Eastgate Shopping Centre, Johannesburg|Eastgate]] in 1979.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.amethyst.co.za/JhbGuide/Johannesburg.htm |title=History of Johannesburg |publisher=Amethyst.co.za |date=5 April 2003 |access-date=2 July 2010 |archive-date=14 June 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090614225343/http://www.amethyst.co.za/JhbGuide/Johannesburg.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the 1990s, the city faced rapid growth of crime throughout large parts of the city. Some areas of skyscrapers were abandoned, many residents left their homes, and businesses moved out. Some historical buildings in central areas were destroyed by fires that spread relentlessly.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Guardian Staff |date=1999-05-30 |title=Johannesburg, the most dangerous city on earth? |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/may/30/southafrica1 |access-date=2022-10-22 |website=the Guardian |language=en |archive-date=22 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022032433/https://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/may/30/southafrica1 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== 21st century ===
[[File:Watching South Africa & Mexico match at World Cup 2010-06-11 in Soweto 7.jpg|left|thumb|Fans of [[South Africa national soccer team]] watching the [[2010 FIFA World Cup]] with [[vuvuzela]]s in the [[Township (South Africa)|township]] of [[Soweto]], a [[Suburbs of Johannesburg|suburb of Johannesburg]].]]

Like many cities around the world, there is an increasing focus on the rejuvenation of the inner city of Johannesburg. One of these initiatives is the Maboneng District located on the south-eastern side of the [[Johannesburg CBD|CBD]]. Originally a hub for art, it has expanded to include restaurants, entertainment venues and retail stores as well as accommodation and hotels. Maboneng calls itself "a place of inspiration—a creative hub, a place to do business, a destination for visitors and a safe, integrated community for residents. A beacon of strength in Africa's most economically prosperous city".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mabonengprecinct.com/ |title=Maboneng {{!}} The heart and essence of the city of Joburg |website=Maboneng |language=en-US |access-date=3 December 2017 |archive-date=4 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204061402/http://www.mabonengprecinct.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

After being destroyed in 2008 to make way for a motor showroom by Imperial Holdings, the iconic Rand Steam Laundries are now being redeveloped as an exact replica, by the order of the Johannesburg Heritage Council. Apart from one filtration shed, there is nothing left on the site after being destroyed. The site will consist of a {{cvt|5000|m2}} precinct.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://marketplace.infrastructurephotos.com/downloads/randsteam-redevelopment/ |title=Rand Steam information |access-date=24 April 2018 |archive-date=24 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224011725/https://marketplace.infrastructurephotos.com/downloads/randsteam-redevelopment/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://mg.co.za/article/2016-05-24-the-battle-to-rebuild-joburgs-historic-laundry-buildings-has-finally-been-won/https://mg.co.za/article/2016-05-24-the-battle-to-rebuild-joburgs-historic-laundry-buildings-has-finally-been-won/ |title=The battle to rebuild Jo'burg's historic laundry buildings has finally been won |last=Pather |first=Ra'eesa |work=The M&G Online |access-date=24 April 2018 |language=en |archive-date=24 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180424202523/https://mg.co.za/article/2016-05-24-the-battle-to-rebuild-joburgs-historic-laundry-buildings-has-finally-been-won/https://mg.co.za/article/2016-05-24-the-battle-to-rebuild-joburgs-historic-laundry-buildings-has-finally-been-won/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 12 May 2008, a series of riots started in the township of [[Alexandra, South Africa|Alexandra]], in the north-eastern part of Johannesburg, when locals attacked migrants from [[Mozambique]], Malawi and [[Zimbabwe]], killing two people and injuring 40 others. These riots sparked the [[xenophobia|xenophobic]] attacks of 2008.<ref name="bbc">{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7396868.stm |title=South African mob kills migrants |publisher=BBC |access-date=19 May 2008 |date=12 May 2008 |archive-date=13 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313001302/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7396868.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[2019 Johannesburg riots]] were similar in nature and origin to the [[Xenophobia in South Africa#May 2008 riots|2008 xenophobic riots]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/gauteng-xenophobia-attacks-akin-to-2008-crisis-institute-of-race-relations-20190905 |title=Gauteng xenophobia attacks akin to 2008 crisis – Institute of Race Relations |date=5 September 2019 |website=News24 |language=en |access-date=22 September 2019 |archive-date=15 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190915032441/https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/gauteng-xenophobia-attacks-akin-to-2008-crisis-institute-of-race-relations-20190905 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

A completely refurbished [[Soccer City]] stadium in Johannesburg hosted the [[2010 FIFA World Cup]] [[FIFA World Cup Final|final]].<ref>{{cite web |title=FNB Stadium (Soccer City) – Johannesburg – The Stadium Guide |url=https://www.stadiumguide.com/fnbstadium/ |language=nl |date=2 March 2015 |access-date=30 May 2023 |archive-date=30 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230530200948/https://www.stadiumguide.com/fnbstadium/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

From 22 to 24 August 2023, Johannesburg hosted [[15th BRICS summit|15th BRICS Summit.]]<ref>{{cite web |title=15th BRICS Summit: Johannesburg II Declaration |url=https://mea.gov.in/bilateral-documents.htm?dtl/37030/15th+BRICS+Summit+Johannesburg+II+Declaration |website=mea.gov.in |language=english}}</ref>

On 31 August 2023, at least 76 people died when a [[2023 Johannesburg building fire|building caught fire]] in Johannesburg. The building had been taken over by a gang who were illegally renting it out.<ref>{{cite news |title=Inside a 'hijacked' South African building |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-africa-66757878 |work=BBC News}}</ref>