“Tax Must Fall”: 1918 Tax Receipt Stuns Mzansi and Reopens Colonial Wounds

• A faded 1918 tax receipt reopened a conversation about forced labour and colonial exploitation that reshaped families and Mzansi’s economy today
• South Africans reacted strongly as the old document exposed how taxation was used to control movement and entrench economic dependence
• The image sparked renewed debate about Mzansi’s history and forced younger generations to confront the harsh realities that shaped modern inequality

A faded tax receipt from 1918 has reignited fresh debate about colonial rule and economic oppression after resurfacing on online.

The image shared on TikTok on 27 January 2026 by @thembinkosisihle showed a “Native Tax Receipt” issued by the British South Africa Company in Northern Rhodesia, now Zambia. The post left South Africans stunned by the brutal simplicity of colonial taxation and control.

The document recorded a compulsory payment imposed on African men who were forced into labour to earn money for taxes.

According to historical records housed in regional archives and colonial studies research, the British South Africa Company introduced poll taxes across its territories to push African communities into the colonial labour system.

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Men were required to pay these taxes annually. Failure meant imprisonment or forced labour. Many had no choice but to leave their homes and work in mines and farms.

The system disrupted family structures and weakened traditional economies. It also created a labour pipeline that fed colonial industries while stripping African households of stability.

Historians note that this tax system was designed to control movement and entrench dependency. The receipt, dated July 1918, showed how a simple piece of paper symbolised the power imbalance between ruler and ruled.

For many South Africans, the image resonated as the countries’ colonial histories are intertwined. Forced labour systems operated across present-day South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Why the image struck a nerve

Researchers from institutions such as the South African History Archive have long documented how colonial taxation policies forced men into migrant labour systems that later shaped apartheid’s economic structure.

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See the TikTok clip below:

Mzansi shares opinions about colonialism

TikTok users pointed out how the image offered a raw snapshot of generational exploitation. Others said it explained why economic redress and historical accountability remain sensitive topics.

@user4423404648096 commented:

“We got over the British oppression. The others need to get over apartheid.”

@crndll7 wrote:

“Is anybody going to do something about the current crisis of the country, or will we keep blaming the past while the future crumbles right in front of us all?”

@AZANIA-SPY🇿🇦 said:

“The Apartheid government withdrew from the Commonwealth. As soon as the ANC armed struggle started and took over in 1994, they put SA back under the Commonwealth. You can make up your own mind who controls ANC.😏”

@yin Yang ☯️ noted:

“Tax must fall.✊”

@domzking5 commented:

“We had a much better and safer life under the Boer.”

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Source: Briefly News