Bushmanland, former bantustan in South-West Africa (now Namibia)
Bushmanland was a bantustan in South West Africa, a territory set up by the South African regime in the northeastern part of present-day Namibia. The area covered dry, sparsely populated land between the Okavango and Kwando rivers.
The territory was created in 1970 as part of apartheid policy to confine San people to a separate reserve. It ceased to exist in 1989 when Namibia gained independence and the bantustan structures were dissolved.
The area was never accessible to visitors and no longer exists as an administrative unit today. Travelers now find communities and conservation areas in the region with no reference to the former political division.
The name referred to the European term for the San people living in the region, not an actual self-designation. The administration existed mostly on paper, as most San continued to live as migrant workers outside the reserve.
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