Maphuti Moraka was banished from Matlala's Location, Pietersburg District, Northern Transvaal [now Polokwane, Limpopo Province] toMatatiele, Eastern Province, [now Eastern Cape] on 3 June 1953, where she joined her partner, Jeremiah Moraka.She had refused to leave but was forced into the police van.She took a three-year old child into banishment but left her older children with an aunt. Another child was born in banishment.
Maphuti Moraka was badly affected by conditions on the trust farm and the sheer loneliness. Five years into her banishment, Maphuti disappeared with their two children. Sometime later, one of the sons discovered Maphuti Moraka in a Pietersburg street. She was mentally ill and could not explain how she got to Pietersburg or indicate the whereabouts of her two children. Her family returned her to Matatiele and after she was allowed to return home from banishment, her condition partially improved but she never fully recovered. The missing children were never found. Her banishment order was withdrawn in 1966.
Contribution by Professor S. Badat, on Banishment, Rhodes University, 2012