These are homes of the people of Tin Town. Photos: Bongane Motaung

Tin Town is a rural KwaZulu-Natal settlement on the banks of the uMvoti River. Despite its name, most of the homes there are made of red mud, clay bricks and wooden planks. The area has about 70 informal homes.

Many of the Tin Town residents are unemployed. Some rely on social grants to survive and say they have no choice but to live there. There is no formal electricity or running water. There are a handful of communal pit toilets which fill up quickly and have a terrible smell.

In 2019, the uMvoti municipality moved some of Tin Town’s residents to RDP houses as part of the Greytown Slums Clearance project. But dozens of people who did not meet the criteria had to stay behind. The municipality, in 2020, obtained a court interdict to stop more people from occupying the land.

“Every house is leaking. We need toilets and proper shelter. When it is raining, we spend our nights standing up because we fear our houses will fall on us while we sleep,” said Nothile Thusi.

Lungisile Mtshali said many of the families depend on a local feeding scheme that provides meals every Tuesday and Wednesday. The rest of the week, they go to bed hungry, said Mtshali.

She said she was among those who did not qualify for an RDP house at the Slums Clearance project. “Government only comes to us with empty promises when they need votes. They only assist with blankets when our houses burn in fires,” she said.

Ward 9 Councillor Lindokuhle Zondi promised that the municipality would deliver portable toilets to the community soon. He said a new project would be launched soon in Greytown to boost job opportunities. “Our town is small and the number of people coming here to search for jobs increases every day,” he said.

The municipality did not respond to our request for comment.

Communal pit toilets used by Tin Town families.

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Funza Park was once the pride and joy of the surrounding Harare community in Cape Town. It is now an eyesore. Photos: Vincent Lali

Funza Park in section 33 of Harare, once the pride and joy of the surrounding Khayelitsha community, has become an eyesore through vandalism and neglect. It is also a crime hot spot, according to police and residents.

The once clean and well-maintained community park is littered with garbage, rubble, discarded clothes and plastic. The main building has been stripped of its doors, windows, roof and electrical wiring. The playground equipment is rusted and vandalised. People use the shell of the building and its surrounds as a rubbish tip.

The abandoned building which residents say attracts criminal activities.

“We used to be proud of this park as it was kept in good condition. There were a guard and a caretaker looking after it, but not anymore,” said community leader Nowandisa Voko.

Children used to play safely in the park after school until their parents returned from work, she said.

She said children still want to play in the park but it is no longer safe. Muggers hide in the abandoned building, waiting for passersby.

“You must pretend not to notice anything while they rob people. Otherwise they will visit and attack you at your place,’’ said Xoliswa Mzoyi.

He said all the other surrounding parks have been built over by shack settlements.

Cwayitha Ngqela said she is struggling to find a tenant because her home is close to the abandoned building and its association with crime. Her last tenant was robbed of his wallet with bank cards and money and his cellphone. She wants the City to demolish the building or refurbish it.

Warrant officer Nosiphiwo Mtengwana, spokesperson for Harare police station, said they were aware of the problem building.

‘’We patrol in that area to stop the robberies, but we can’t stay there all the time because Khayelitsha is big,’’ she said.

Ward 98 Councillor Anele Gabuza (ANC) said the guard and the caretaker last worked there more than a decade ago.

Mayco member for community service and health Patricia van der Ross said vandalism and theft were the major challenge.

“The cost of continuous repair and replacement of damaged assets is unsustainable,’’ she said.

‘’The City calls on residents to put forward any ideas on how to effect a change in behaviour from within the community, or volunteer to get involved in expanding the reach of City and SAPS resources at recreation and parks facilities by forming groups such as neighbourhood watches,” she said.

Children still want to play at dilapidated Funza Park.

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The post Launch of the People’s Plan to the Right to Housing in an Age of Climate Change appeared first on groundWork.

DATE: 28 November 202

Launch of the People’s Plan to the Right to Housing in an Age of Climate Change

Durban: Thursday 28th November sees the launch of the People’s Plan to the Right to Housing in the Age of Climate Change hosted by the Chief Strategy Officer of eThekwini Municipality, Mr Bongumusa and the Durban Coalition at the Durban Botanic Gardens.

In the past few years, the city of Durban has experienced increased severe weather events due to climate change. Floods have resulted in lost lives and extensive damage to urban infrastructure. In April 2022, 461 people lost their lives over 3 days. The resultant infrastructure collapse rendered our rivers and ocean unfit for human use. The lack of maintenance to key public infrastructure (sewage, water, roads and electricity) compounded the destruction experienced in the floods. Almost two years later, slow infrastructure repair continues to impact on people across the city, especially the most marginalised people. This has revealed a dire lack of planning and capacity within the city to respond to climate change disasters.

Against this backdrop, and in response to these climate and human induced disasters, a coalition of civil society, civic structures and social movements formed in May 2022. The Durban Coalition is a growing collective of civil society (NGOs, CBOs, university academics and social movements) and civic structures (ratepayers and residents associations) in eThekwini. As a non-politically aligned group, the Durban Coalition has committed to work collectively and in solidarity to build a united and co-ordinated participatory civil society movement to strengthen civic structures on the ground. It also engages constructively with local and other spheres of government to respond to social and environmental justice issues.

“The consequences of climate change are no longer an abstract future event,” says Dr Kira Erwin of groundWork, Friends of the Earth South Africa, “the severe weather we experience, including floods, storms, heatwaves and drought, pose significant threats to all life in the city, including to animals and plants. A lack of political will to meet climate targets from all nation states means that we must refocus our efforts to find ways to survive on a planet that overshoots a 1.5° Celsius increase in global temperature.”

In response to this situation, Durban Coalition has developed a programme of action towards transforming the city into a more just, inclusive and climate resilient place to live. Through a participatory and grounded planning process, across different urban sectors and class positions, the coalition has collectively produced a bottom-up development plan for the Right to Housing in the Age of Climate Change.

Addressing climate change requires integrated planning through participatory and democratic methods. This People’s Plan for the Right to Housing in an Age of Climate Change offers a clear programme-based implementation guide for the municipality and civil society partners to prepare the city to live through severe weather events and protect people’s right to housing and a healthy environment, especially for the most marginalised. Developed over 18-months the People’s Plan involved a broad ground-truthing exercise to test it with constituencies and partners of all member organisations in the Durban Coalition. The People’s Plan has innovative programmes on, amongst others, technical norms and standards for climate resilience, community disaster management planning, security of tenure, and new governance arrangements.

“A Just Transition in South Africa must include participatory resilience planning premised on environmental justice principles that address marginalization and inequality in the city,” says Dr Kira Erwin.

….ends…

Peoples Plan Links:

English version:

IsiZulu version:

Media Contacts: 

groundWork: Tsepang Molefe +27 74 405 1257  media@groundwork.org.za

The Durban Coalition:  Thalia Erwin +27 83 480 0635  thedurbancoalition@gmail.com

Durban Coalition Spokespersons: 

S’bu Zikode (President of Abahlali baseMjondolo)

Kira Erwin (groundWork)

Vusi Zweni (Chairperson of Ubunye bamaHostela)

Nicole Daniels (Springfield Disaster Management)

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Residents, landlords and immigrant spaza shop owners at a community meeting at Babs Madlakane Hall in KwaNobuhle, Kariega, on Thursday. Photo: Thamsanqa Mbovane

Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality is scrambling to legalise residential based enterprises

By Thamsanqa Mbovane

Hundreds of landlords in Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality were shocked to learn that they have to pay R2,207 to apply for a permit to rent out “spaza shops”.

Landlords and immigrant spaza shop owners from Pakistan, Somali and Ethiopia were called to a meeting at Babs Madlakane Hall in KwaNobuhle, Kariega, on Thursday. The meeting was convened by SAPS, the community policing forum, and a group of pastors. The pastors have an office at the police station called Spiritual Crime Prevention (SCP).

Mthulisi Msimanga, director of land and planning in the metro, told the attendees: “You’re not allowed to run a business before our approval. The application assessment process takes between 14 and 30 days. You are only permitted to operate a home enterprise after the application has been approved by the municipality.”

“The landlords must visit the land planning offices on the third floor at Lillian Diedricks Building in Govan Mbeki Avenue, Gqeberha. We want landlords only, not spaza shop owners.”

Msimanga said, “These policies were made by the councillors and we must implement them.”

Aretha Plata, from the public health directorate, told the shop owners they also had to pay R796 for a business license.

“The first requirement before you come to our office is to get consent from the municipality’s town planning. After that we require you to have a waste removal paper … The landlords must use a registered service provider or the municipality to collect rubbish legally.”

The third paper that businesses should have is pest control, because in shops there are dangerous chemicals that can contaminate or poison food.

The fourth requirement is food safety training, whether selling sealed food or takeaways, she said.

“You are not supposed to do decanting. Anything you sell is supposed to have a label and an expiry date. We don’t allow decanting,” said Plata.

Apostle Nceba Jantjies, of SCP, told the gathering, “We have elderly people who make a living by renting out their houses to foreign nationals for over 15 years … The municipality failed long ago to address this situation.”

“We are seeing the hall is packed and that means foreign nationals care; they want to adhere to the law.”

Mnyamezeli Luphondwana, a landlord, raised his concern: “Changing our houses to business premises could make the government take away our [social] grants.”

As the meeting adjourned, shop owners pushed and shoved to get application forms from municipal officials.

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Eminent scholars Professor Yan Hairong (Tsinghua University) and Professor Barry Sautman (Hong Kong Polytechnic) will present their research at the University of the Western Cape in this one-off event. They will elaborate on mechanisms of global capital accumulation in the context of China’s interface with the Global South, especially through case studies of key BRI countries, Ethiopia and Sri Lanka.

Details:
Thursday, 28 November 2024
13.00 – 14.00 SAST
Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS)
2nd Floor, Jakes Gerwel Hall, University of the Western Cape Main Campus, Bellville

All welcome. Refreshments will be served.

Biographies

Professor Yan Hairong, Professor at Tsinghua Institute for Advanced Study in Humanities and Social Sciences and Department of Sociology
Professor Yan earlier research focused on rural-to-urban migrant domestic workers in urban China. She examined the transformation in rural-urban relations, gender relations and class relations in China’s reform process. In the past decade, she has become concerned with food sovereignty and agrarian change in China. She publishes in the Journal of Peasant Studies and the Journal of Agrarian Change and contributes to the food sovereignty network in China. For the past two decades, she has collaborated with Professor Sautman on China-Africa links and has co-authored East Mountain Tiger, West Mountain Tiger: China, Africa, the West and “Colonialism” and, in Chinese, China in Africa: Discourse and Practices.

Professor Barry Sautman, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Professor Sautman is a political scientist (PhD Columbia University) and lawyer (JD UCLA, LLM NYU) who primarily teaches international law, China/US relations, contemporary China, ethnicity and nationalism. He collaborates with Professor Yan to conduct research on China-Africa links, including political economy, labour rights, migration between China and Africa and interactions between Chinese and Africans, representations and perceptions of China and Chinese in Africa, and the supposed strategic rivalry between the US and China in Africa.  He has published several monographs and numerous journal articles, as well as print media op-ed pieces and online contributions.

The post Public talk: Chinese ‘colonialism’, capital accumulation, and the Belt and Road Initiative appeared first on Plaas.

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A court has ordered that these homes in Magadangana Village in Mpumalanga, built on municipal plots sold by a traditional leader, be demolished. Photos: Warren Mabona

Families who were illegally sold plots on municipal land in Mpumalanga by a traditional leader will soon be forced to vacate the properties.
The Middelburg High Court has ruled in favour of the Thembisile Hani Local Municipality, dismissing the traditional leader’s attempt to appeal an eviction order.
Judas Mahlangu, leader of the Ndzundza-Mabhoko Traditional Authority, has been selling off stands on municipal-owned land for at least R2,500 each since 2018.

The Middelburg High Court has ruled in favour of the Thembisile Hani Local Municipality in Mpumalanga, ordering a group of people and the traditional leader who illegally sold them plots on municipal land to vacate properties.

The group have been ordered to leave the land by 31 October.

But many of the people still living in Magadangana Village say they have nowhere else to go. They say they spent what little money they had, or even took out loans, to build their homes there.

Judas Mahlangu, leader of the Ndzundza-Mabhoko Traditional Authority, has been selling off stands on the municipal land since 2018 for at least R2,500 each.

The battle between the municipality and Mahlangu has been ongoing for six years.

The area, officially known as the Farm Vlaklaagte, has no running water, electricity or road infrastructure. The people who bought stands from Mahlangu will be forced to leave as soon as the eviction order has been handed over to the sheriff of the court to execute, the municipality confirmed. This is after three failed legal attempts by Mahlangu to claim that he had a right to sell off the municipal land.

The Thembisile Hani municipality first found out in June 2019 that stands were being sold on its land. The land has been earmarked for the development of government housing.

The municipality went to court, and in February 2022 the Middleburg High Court interdicted Mahlangu and another man, Johannes Jiyane, from allocating stands. By then 175 sites had been “allocated”. According to some residents, Jiyane works with Mahlangu at the Ndzundza-Mabhoko Tribal Authority.

The municipality returned to court in January 2024, and Judge Mpopelele Bruce Langa ordered Mahlangu, Jiyane and those living on the land to leave by the end of April.

Mahlangu then filed an application to appeal against this ruling. On 23 August Judge Langa dismissed the appeal with costs. The judge said that leave to appeal should only be granted if the court is of the opinion that the appeal would have reasonable prospects of success or is arguable.

In rejecting the appeal, Judge Langa said that, among other things, Mahlangu had failed to prove his authority to bring the appeal on behalf of all of the people occupying the municipal land. “The fact that he may be the traditional leader in the area, did not give him the authority to act on behalf of the ‘community’ and institute legal proceedings without the resolution or consent by the community for him to do so,” he said.

Langa added that the court had made a factual finding that the municipality was the rightful owner and that there was not sufficient evidence that families had been on the land for more than six months before the initial litigation.

Jabulani Ngema worries that he will be homeless for Christmas.

Nowhere to go

There are currently about 200 informal structures and brick homes on the land and a few larger brick and mortar houses are still being built.

Many of the residents GroundUp spoke to last week say they now live in fear daily of their imminent eviction.

Jabulani Ngema told GroundUp that he worries that he will be homeless for Christmas. He said he bought a stand from Mahlangu for R2,500 in 2021 and spent R5,000 on building material and furniture to construct his two-room shack.

“I am worried because I don’t know if the municipality will move us to another land.. I fear that the municipality will demolish my home and damage my building material when evicting us,” said Ngema. “Christmas is coming. I don’t want to be homeless.”

Ngema’s shack is on the outskirts of the site near a dam. He said moving out of the area would be a huge setback for him because he wants to start a vegetable garden and sell the produce to make a living.

Another resident owns a seven-roomed house on the site. He said he had spent more than R120,000 on his house so far. “I live with my wife and three children in this home and they love our house. If the municipality evicts and relocates us to another land, it will still be a big loss for me because I will have to spend more money building another house there.”

GroundUp sent questions to the spokesperson for Thembisile Hani Municipality, Simphiwe Mokako on 7 November 2024. Mokako said the court order had ordered the municipality to find alternative land, and “We have indicated that the municipality will abide by the court order.”

“The matter of the evictions is in the hands of the Sheriff.”

Mahlangu said he would not answer our questions before hanging up on us.

GroundUp also sent questions by email on 11 November to the Ndzundza-Mabhoko Traditional Authority but there was no response by the time of publication.

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Thousands of Khayelitsha residents have to use these filthy, broken toilets. Photos taken on Monday, 11 November by Vincent Lali

Over 3,000 families in Silver Town, Khayelitsha, have been forced to either use filthy, damaged toilets or relieve themselves in a field. Blowy, Sikalekhekhe and Marikana informal settlements have about 340 toilets, but they have not been serviced since 4 October, when the previous cleaners’ contracts expired.

Many toilets have no doors, cisterns or seats. Around them is stinking mud mixed with urine, faeces, garbage and stagnant water – a health hazard that also makes the toilets difficult to access.

Some residents have resorted to using buckets in their shacks and emptying these into the blocked toilets or on the ground outside.

Asanda Lengesi, who lives near the toilets with her partner and two children, complained about the stench and the flies.

“The smell gets worse in summer, so I spend my days at my friend’s place to avoid it,” she said.

According to Lubabalo Msuthu, chairperson of the Winnie Madikizela SANCO branch, there has been a huge reduction in cleaning staff.

“Two years ago, we had about 100 cleaners and two cleaners cleaned one toilet. Their number first decreased to 56 and later to 35,” he said.

‘’We want to know when the new cleaners will start work,’’ he said on Tuesday.

Ward 93 Councillor Thando Pimpi (ANC) said he would report the damaged toilets to the superintendent.

“The City responds to damaged or vandalised toilets when we receive service requests,” said Mayco member for Water and Sanitation Councillor Zahid Badroodien.

He said the City works with a ratio of one janitor per 20 toilets. He told GroundUp on 14 October that the City would hire 17 new janitors and assess the damaged toilets.

On Wednesday, Badroodien responded that janitors signed 18-month skills contracts on Tuesday 12 November “which means services will resume shortly”.

He said most toilets had been fixed except those which were “surrounded by rubble” and therefore currently inaccessible, but those would be attended to.

He blamed the poor conditions of the toilets on the actions of some individuals.

“Unfortunately, besides the damaged or vandalised toilets, we often also find foreign objects and other waste dumped into the toilet which prevents it from being used by community members,” he said.

But residents are fed up with the stink, the unhealthy sanitation and undignified conditions they have been living under.

“If the City can’t maintain the toilets, it must move us elsewhere,” said resident Gugu Zwane.

Some of the 340 communal toilets that have not been cleaned for over a month.

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Today, Urgewald and 34 NGO partners published the 2024 update of the Global Oil & Gas Exit List (GOGEL). GOGEL is the most comprehensive public database of companies in the oil and gas industry. It covers 1,769 companies active in the
upstream, midstream and power sectors. Companies on GOGEL are responsible for 95% of global oil and gas production. GOGEL 2024 can be downloaded at gogel.org

In 2023, oil and gas production reached a historic high. In the hottest year on record, companies on GOGEL produced 55.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent (bboe). Global hydrocarbons production surpassed the pre-COVID all-time high. “This production record is deeply concerning. If we do not end fossil fuel expansion and move towards a managed decline of oil and gas production, the 1.5 °C goal will be out of reach,” saysNils Bartsch, Head of Oil & Gas Research at Urgewald. One year ago, the UN Climate Change Executive Secretary heralded the COP28 agreement as the ‘beginning of the end’ of the fossil fuel era. But oil and gas companies’ actions tell a different tale: One where oil and gas expansion becomes a never-ending story.

Read more here.

The post Urgewald -The 2024 Global Oil & Gas Exit List: More Loss and Damage Ahead appeared first on groundWork.

The post Urgewald -The 2024 Global Oil & Gas Exit List: More Loss and Damage Ahead appeared first on Vuka News.

• Victory for Muslim Women and Children: The Women’s Legal Centre (WLC) achieved a major win as President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Divorce Amendment Bill, granting legal recognition and protection to Muslim marriages in South Africa.
• Constitutional Court Ruling: In June 2022, South Africa’s Constitutional Court found that the Marriage Act of 1961 and Divorce Act of 1979 did not comply with the Constitution because they excluded Shariah (Islamic law) marriages that weren’t registered as civil marriages.
• New Protections: The new amendments to the Divorce Act now recognize Muslim marriages. They provide essential rights, including:
  • Protection for minor and dependent children,
  • Fair distribution of assets,
  • Legal remedies for divorce.
• Addressing Historical Injustice: Before this change, Muslim women were denied key rights like inheritance, maintenance, and fair asset division in divorce or upon the death of a spouse.
• WLC’s Role and Mission: Since 1994, the WLC has been dedicated to fighting discrimination against Muslim women, believing in equal application of the Constitution to all citizens.
• About the Women’s Legal Centre: The WLC is a feminist legal organization in Africa that promotes women’s rights through litigation, advocacy, education, legal advice, research, and training to combat gender-based injustices and empower women.

• For more information, please contact WLC at info@wlce.co.za
• For media-related queries, please contact WLC at communications@wlce.co.za

The post Historic Win: Muslim Marriages Now Legally Recognised After WLC’s 25-Year Fight Against Discrimination appeared first on Vuka News.

The Supreme Court of Appeal has slammed former judge president John Hlophe for meddling in a straightforward eviction case. Photo: Ben Bezuidenhout via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) has slammed John Hlophe for intervening in a straightforward eviction case when he had been the judge president in the Western Cape.
The SCA has found that Hlophe inappropriately and unnecessarily handpicked two judges to hear the case and had issued extensive directives, resulting in a flawed judgment.
The court said the judgment in 2019 failed to recognise basic legal principles and had resulted in the owners paying enormous bills for services for the unlawful occupants.

John Hlophe has come under fire from the Supreme Court of Appeal for meddling in what should have been a straightforward eviction matter. This was before he was impeached and still the judge president in the Western Cape.

The application initially failed when it was heard by two Western Cape High Court judges handpicked by Hlophe, who then gave them extensive directives on how the case should be handled. This was a “matter of some surprise”, the judges, headed by Justice Nathan Ponnan, said in their ruling on Tuesday.

“Why it failed, induces some measure of alarm and cannot but provoke strong feelings of judicial disquiet,” they said, noting that the matter involved a “commonplace application by an owner for the evictions of certain unlawful occupiers from a property owned by it”.

The owner of the property in Kraaifontein, Cape Town, is the Mzamomhle Foundation Trust. Trustee Robert Paul Serne, in 2006, on a Habitat for Humanity tour to South Africa met Margaret Ngaleka, who was running an unregistered daycare centre. He and others assisted her fixing the roof and then purchased containers to house the centre.

In 2010, the non-profit trust was established to help with poverty relief, welfare and self-help projects.

In 2011, the City of Cape Town offered to sell a vacant stand to Ngaleka, but because she was unable to pay the nominal purchase price, she sought assistance from the trust, which paid the City R33,000.

The property was then transferred into the name of Mzamomhle Educare. The trust then agreed to construct an early childhood development centre (ECDC) on the property at a cost of more than R2-million. Ngaleka agreed to donate the property to the trust and the trust, in turn, concluded a lease agreement with her.

Ngaleka died in 2016. Her daughter and granddaughter took over the property, claiming to have inherited it from her. They were not qualified to run the centre and Mzamomhle Educare soon fell into rental arrears and did not pay municipal rates or other charges on time.

Attempts at resolving the issues came to nought. Eventually the trust instituted eviction proceedings.

Ngaleka’s daughter, Bongeka Mqolombeni, opposed the application. She said her mother was poorly educated and not proficient in English. She had not understood the import of the documents she signed. Her mother, she said, had not known that she had transferred the property to the trust and thought she was paying towards an insurance premium and not rental.

Hlophe meddles

The SCA judges said in November 2019 “in circumstances that are not apparent from the record”, Hlophe issued a directive that two judges, Babalwe Mantame and Lister Nuku, must hear the matter, and issued a 14-point directive as to what they must ask and consider.

“It is unclear why [Hlophe] saw fit to issue practice directives in this matter or how it came about that he did so. Given the nature of civil litigation in our adversarial system, it is for the parties, either in pleadings or affidavits, to set out and define the nature of their dispute. Not only did the practice directive range beyond the issues identified by the parties, but it rested in several fundamental respects, on a misconception as the essential nature of the application and the relief that was sought,” the SCA said.

“The judgment [refusing the eviction] was largely tailored to the issues identified in the practice directive rather than those defined in the pleadings.”

The SCA said there was simply no reason for the matter to have been heard by two judges.

“Aside from the undesirability in handpicking judges for matters such as this, the appointment of two judges to hear a straightforward eviction application meant that any appeal would have to be heard by this court. The consequence is that a matter such as this, which is not truly deserving of the attention of this court, adds to our already congested court roll and delays the finalisation of other matters that are more deserving.”

They said neither Hlophe nor the two judges hearing the matter had recognised that the answering affidavit was replete with hearsay and had not properly considered whether that evidence was even credible.

Even if Mqolombeni’s evidence had been properly scrutinised, she had failed hopelessly to raise any defence to the eviction.

The trust had attached a deed of transfer as well as a title deed reflecting it as the registered owner. Ngaleka had signed a lease agreement and she and the trust had complied with its terms up until her death.

“These facts bely the contention that she was fraudulently misled into donating the property or had any misgivings about its subsequent transfer to the trust,” the SCA judges said.

All the trust had to do was to prove that it was the owner of the property.

“The respondents cannot content themselves with a denial of the existence of the lease agreement and yet simply remain in occupation of the property in perpetuity without any lawful basis.

“No doubt, taking its cue from the Judge’s President’s directives, the High Court considered factors that would ordinarily be relevant to an application under the Prevention of Illegal Eviction and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act (PIE). But the property is not a residential property so PIE does not find application.

“The High Court seemed concerned that the children who attended the ECDC would be evicted. That concern was misplaced. The trust stated that it was intent on continuing the educare facility on the property. Moreover, the eviction of the children was never sought by the trust.”

The SCA judges said the order of the High Court had placed the trust into an intolerable situation.

“It has, without proper justification, not only been deprived of the use of its property for several years, but has also been unable to fulfil an important condition registered against the title of the property, namely the operation of an ECDC. That notwithstanding, it continues to face enormous bills for utilities consumed by the respondents.”

The SCA judges upheld the appeal, with costs, and ordered the respondents to vacate the property within five days. They also granted an interdict against the respondents from re-occupation or interfering with the trust’s use and enjoyment of the property.

The post John Hlophe’s meddling in eviction matter slammed by appeal court appeared first on Vuka News.

BY Chris Gilili – this post was first published on Elitsha

On Saturday, the fifth instalment of Ndifuna Ukwazi’s Land and Housing School convened at Community House in Salt River, Cape Town, to discuss housing issues and land reform.

IN SUMMARY:

• Land Reform and Political Silence:
  • Veteran journalist Lebogang Seale criticized political silence on land reform, especially during recent elections. “It’s sad that, during the recent elections, none of the political parties were vocal about the issue of land reform.”
• Impact of Land Dispossession:
  • Seale shared that land dispossession strips people of identity, security, and belonging. “When your land is dispossessed, you’re stripped of your whole being.” He expressed disappointment with the government’s inaction on land reform, stating they now side with white farmers, enforcing evictions.
• Women’s Marginalization:
  • Seale emphasized the exploitation of women in farm labor, blaming patriarchy and government inaction. “Women are seen as the cheapest form of labour… The government is not doing enough to address the plight of women.”
• Land Reclamation Struggles:
  • Seale’s book, One Hundred Years of Dispossession: My Family’s Quest to Reclaim Our Land, details his family’s legal struggle to reclaim their land. He declared that land reform in South Africa is “dead” and called for an organization to defend the interests of farm workers.
• Housing and Distribution Issues: Tini Mohau from Indibano Yabahlali questioned the fairness of the housing waiting list in the Western Cape. “There is always talk about a waiting list, but no one has actually seen this waiting list.”
• Informal Settlement Residents:
  • Mohau argued that those in informal settlements are often labeled as “queue jumpers” and prioritized over backyard dwellers, creating division and frustration.
• Importance of Decent Housing: Decent housing impacts personal dignity and stability, as Mohau explained. “In an informal settlement, you always know that when it rains you must be ready for disaster.”
• Food Security and Community Gardens: Mohau urged community gardens to combat rising food prices and support unemployed youth. “Food is becoming very expensive… So having these community gardens… will help them.”
• Call for Practical Action: Mohau expressed people’s frustration with ongoing discussions about land reform, pushing for real action. “People want practicality and are tired of the talks. We need to practise the things we always speak about.”
• Evictions and Government Accountability:
  • Bonga Zamisa from the Social Justice Coalition spoke against forced evictions and the government’s lack of commitment to housing. “The City of Cape Town has even returned funds allocated for housing and infrastructure back to the treasury.”
  • He stressed the importance of housing as essential for stability, safety, and equality. “Housing must be considered not just as shelter but as a means to ensure safety, stability, and equality.”

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People occupying abandoned municipal and Transnet owned buildings at the dilapidated railway station near Morelig in Bethlehem were removed by residents and police last week. Photos: Tladi Moloi

This followed outrage in Bethlehem, Free State, after a 17-year-old learner was raped while walking home from school last week

By Tladi Moloi

• Residents of Bohlokong in Bethlehem, accompanied by police, removed people occupying abandoned municipal and Transnet buildings at the dilapidated railway station near Morelig last week.
• This followed outrage in the community after a 17-year-old learner from Ntsue Secondary School was raped at the railway on her way home last Monday.
• Spokesperson for the movement Bethlehem Against Drugs and Crime, Portia Molebatsi, told GroundUp that residents and police are monitoring the area to prevent people moving back.

Residents of Bohlokong in Bethlehem, accompanied by police, forcefully removed people living in abandoned municipal and Transnet buildings at the dilapidated railway station near Morelig last week.

On Monday morning spokesperson for Bethlehem Against Drugs and Crime Portia Molebatsi, told GroundUp residents and police are still monitoring the area to prevent people moving back.

Residents want the Dihlabeng local municipality and Transnet demolish these old and vandalised buildings to prevent criminals and drug users from using them.

Last week Thursday about 90 people gathered at the Bethlehem taxi rank before heading out to raid the buildings. They claim that the buildings have become hives of criminal activity.

This followed outrage in the community after a 17-year-old learner from Ntsue Secondary School was raped at the railway on her way home from extra classes last Monday.

Molebatsi said, “The decision came after one learner was raped at the railway. There were many incidents that had occurred in that area in the past such as robberies and many others.”

After removing several people, most of whom looked very young, Molebatsi said they recognised some of the those living there. “Most of them are people from the location. We spoke to them and urged them to go home. Some promised to go, others left immediately. We are going to go back to check in a few weeks,” she said.

Among those living there were a pregnant teenager who was living with her homeless boyfriend, and a drug user who said he was not allowed to smoke “nyaope” at home.

Free State police spokesperson Warrant Officer Mmako Mophiring confirmed that the police had accompanied the community to the buildings at their request after the teenager’s rape. “We have not arrested anyone at the moment, but we are busy with investigations,” he said.

Mophiring confirmed that police had many reported cases of robberies in the vicinity of the abandoned buildings.

Transnet had not responded to GroundUp’squestions by the time of publication.

Tshediso Maitse, communication manager at the municipality, said the buildings would be secured and the municipality would take stock of their condition.

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Councillor Ganadhla Mabona addresses residents of Ebhubesini informal setttlement during a fiery meeting on 8 October. Photos: Warren Mabona

• The development of Ebhubesini informal settlement east of Pretoria is stalled because of a power struggle between the ward councillor and the man who says he founded the settlement.
• At a meeting earlier this month, ward councillor Ganadhla Mabona accused Mduduzi Mhlanga of blocking progress.
• He said Mhlanga had stopped surveyors from entering the area to start the process of formalising the settlement.
• Mhlanga acknowledged that he had stopped the surveyor team but said it was because the municipality had refused to sign guarantees that homes would not be demolished during the formalisation.
• Residents say they have been hoping for basic services since the settlement was founded in 2017.

Families in Ebhubesini informal settlement, near Bronkhorstspruit in the east of Pretoria, are caught in the crossfire in a fight for power between the ward councillor and the man who says he founded the settlement.

Tensions flared at a meeting in Ebhubesini on 8 October, when ward councillor Ganadhla Mabona accused Mduduzi Mhlanga of blocking progress formalising the settlement.

Ebhubesini is along the R568 Road near Bronkhorstspruit in the east of Tshwane. Residents say it was set up by Mhlanga, who started “allocating stands” to families in 2017.

Residents say they have been hoping for basic services for years.

Addressing about 500 residents on a sports field on 8 October, Mabona pleaded for patience. He said formalisation of any area takes time.

Mabona said Mhlanga had blocked a team of land surveyors sent by the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements on 26 September to survey the area as part of the process of formalisation.

“The surveyors came here to survey Ebhubesini, but the owner of Ebhubesini blocked them by ordering them to leave this area,” said Mabona.

“Let us not be deceived by people because they are scared that if the government intervenes, this thing of selling people’s stands three times or four times will come to an end.” He said he had received threatening phone calls.

“The man who blocked surveyors is Mduduzi Mhlanga. If he is here, let him come forward and explain what it is that made him block the development of Ebhubesini.”

Later during the meeting, Mhlanga emerged from the crowd and walked towards Mabona, but Mabona refused to give him a chance to speak. He said this was because he had afforded Mhlanga an opportunity on 27 September to come and talk to him, but Mhlanga had refused.

Speaking to GroundUp after the meeting, Mhlanga acknowledged that he had blocked the surveyors. He said this was because Mabona and the City of Tshwane had refused to enter into a written agreement with him undertaking not to demolish residents’ houses or reduce the size of their stands during the formalisation process.

“It’s true. I blocked the surveyors,” said Mhlanga. “The reason I blocked the surveyors is that I told the surveyors that I know how [the City of] Tshwane works. They will survey and tell the engineer that the houses of people are in the way of roads and pipes. They will demolish these houses and no one will refund these people. I wanted to protect people from losing the last monies that they used to build houses.”

But, he said, he would no longer block surveyors, because many residents had indicated during the meeting that they wanted the surveyors to come.

Mhlanga told GroundUp he had “founded” the area in 2017 at the request of a group of elderly women from Ekangala. He said he had occupied empty farm land and allocated stands to people for free. Any company or person who wanted to run any developmental projects in Ebhubesini must first consult him and his committee, he said.

“They must know that there is a community’s committee that started Ebhubesini. [Whether] they like it or not, they must come to us,” said Mhlanga.

He said the stands he “allocated” were sold to the residents for R50 each by a “local traditional leader” who worked with him. He said he did not remember the name of the leader. He said there were 7,000 households in the settlement.

Several residents told GroundUp after the meeting that they support Mhlanga as they fear that the City will demolish their houses or reduce their stands when developing the area.

“Mhlanga is our leader and he is protecting us from losing our houses,” said resident Muzi Mkhwanazi.

Speaking to GroundUp on the phone on 14 October, Mabona said he was living in fear of his life because Mhlanga had assaulted him in his office last year and threatened him. Mhlanga denied this.

Mabona said there were between 2,000 and 3,000 homes in the settlement, not 7,000. Ebhubesini had never had a traditional leader, he said.

Bongi Jiyana, who lives in a shack with her husband and their three children, said Mhlanga had “given them a stand” in 2022. She said the City sends trucks with drinking water but not often enough.

“We don’t have a water tank in our yard and the truck comes only once a week,” said Jiyana. “I always struggle to cook and wash clothes for us because we don’t get enough water from the trucks.”

Asked about water supplies, Mabona said the City sends trucks to deliver water to the residents every day, but did not say how many trucks.

GroundUp sent a list of ten questions to the City but spokesperson Lindela Mashigo did not answer all the questions. Mashigo said the City is in the process of formalising Ebhubesini.

“There are consultants already appointed through the City’s Human Settlement Department to see the process through,” said Mashigo.

“Currently, the City is providing the settlement with mobile toilets and water through Jojo tanks which are filled by water trucks.”

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A flooded sewage pump station in Konofile Street in NU11, Motherwell in Gqeberha. Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality says it is evacuating people in flooded areas to churches and community halls. Photo: Joseph Chirume

Hundreds of families across Nelson Mandela Bay have sought shelter in churches and community halls after their homes were badly flooded on Monday night. Essential infrastructure is badly damaged. Several main roads in Kariega and Gqeberha have washed away.

Schools and some factories in affected communities were also closed for the day.

On Tuesday morning, we found scores of people and children from Lapland informal settlement in ward 45 walking in the pouring rain to neighbouring communities because their shacks were badly waterlogged.

Residents carried satchels and plastic bags filled with their belongings and whatever food they could carry.

People from Lapland informal settlement in ward 45 in Kariega, including children, walk in the rain with whatever they could salvage from their flooded homes. Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality says it is evacuating people in flooded areas to churches and community halls. Photo: Thamsanqa Mbovane

“We woke up at about 5am on Tuesday and my shack was filled with water. We had to flee. This is the second time since June that we have been hit by floods like this,” said Marshall Kerby, a concerned father. “We did not heal from the June flood. We lost everything again that we tried to recover planks, zincs and furniture,” he said.

His neighbour, Johnson Williams, said about six police vans had helped to transport them to a church in the nearby Gamble community. “I stay with five children in my shack. We lost all our belongings to the flood. We are about 500 people in Lapland.”

Gibbon Street in Kariega was closed on Tuesday after part of it was washed away by heavy rainfall. Photo: Thamsanqa Mbovane

On Tuesday, the municipality’s Electricity and Energy Directorate said, “In light of the recent flooding in and around the metro, we urge all customers experiencing house flooding to switch off the main switches on their distribution boards as a precautionary measure. This action will help eliminate the risk of possible electrocution.”

The municipality added that areas worst affected by the storm included Lapland, Motherwell, Ibhayi, Vastrap, and Jubilee Park, among others.

Niven’s bridge, leading in and out of KwaNobuhle, has been closed due to damage. Photo: Thamsanqa Mbovane

“As a relief measure, residents have been moved to Sunshine School, Missionvale Care Centre and the UCC Church. NMBM’s Disaster Management Directorate will be moving residents from Lapland to Tambo Hall, residents from Veeplaas and Soweto will be moved to Veeplaas Community Hall, and residents from Soweto and Salamntu will be moved to Soweto Community Hall.

“Residents will be provided with mattresses, blankets and soup whilst mop up operations continue. Gift of the Givers, Shoprite, NHC Nama Royal House, Al-Imdaad Foundation and SASCO Pepsi Co have donated warm meals that will go to residents who have been moved to the evacuation halls.”

Houses along Sahlunge Street in NU11 in Motherwell, Gqeberha were still flooded on Tuesday afternoon. Photo: Joseph Chirume

Shacks in Endlovini along Addo Road in NU12 were waterlogged. Photo: Joseph Chirume

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BY Dumisile Magagula – this post first appeared at Tunatazama

Name: Dumisile Magagula Date: 23 August 2024 / Place: phase 4 area / Province: Mpumalanga Province / Municipality: Emalahleni Municipality

Due to a lack of access to land, people need a place to locate their homes. They find themselves with no choice but to build under this situation, looking at what is happening in our township. There’s no equality and we are still subjected to this kind of life that we are living, and it shows that nothing is getting better after 30 years of democracy. Access to land is what we are asking for and we will build our houses, but private companies have been provided with land us.

We are faced with this situation here in the Emalahleni area where you will find land that’s been occupied by coal mines industries. It happens every day because people need a place to stay. We have a high number of backroom dwellers and I’m not just talking about people from other provinces, I’m talking about people who are born here in Emalahleni. They need housing or land.

The whole black society is affected by this situation that is not improving. It’s getting worse day by day, black people are from poor communities that are not a conducive place to stay for human beings. We are here and we don’t have a say.

The municipality does not provide people with land or provide people with decent housing, not only a house but decent housing and a place that is not far from the city. Our policies are not in our favour as black communities, instead are oppressing us as black society. That’s where you find people go and build houses under these power lines which pose a danger to them but no one cares.

Municipalities should start now by providing people with land not to build RDP houses for the people, because even that process takes too long for people to get their houses. We are proposing that municipalities should provide land so people can build their own houses.

Those people should be removed from the power lines. There will be dangers now that rain is coming and thunderstorms. That’s where we will realize that this is a serious issue the municipality provides people with land

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RDP houses in Langa, Cape Town. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks

State housing applicants are sometimes denied a house purely because of red tape.
Sometimes they get allocated a house but for various reasons they cannot live in them.
More than 340,000 Capetonians have applied for a government house and are currently on a waiting list.

Manenberg resident Bennita Koff lives in a backyard structure. She applied for state housing almost 20 years ago. Now, she’s getting evicted.

On 19 August, she received notice to vacate her residence by 30 September. This was later extended to 30 October.

“I don’t know where to go. I don’t know what to do,” says Koff.

Koff says the stress has affected her blood pressure and her doctor has warned that she is at risk of having a stroke.

Koff pays rent of R500 per month, about the same amount as the child support grant she gets for one of her grandchildren. She used to live in her one-room backyard structure with seven children and grandchildren, but part of the roof caved in during winter, forcing some of her family to move out and live with relatives.

Koff is one of more than 340,000 Capetonians who have applied for a government house and have not yet received one.

The City provides useful statistics for Manenberg. Approximately 70% of all state provided homes in Manenberg have backyard tenants. There were 11,768 applications registered on the Housing Needs Register as at 9 October 2024 from Manenberg. These include:

3,673 applicants who have been assisted with a formal City Housing opportunity;
2,597 applicants who have either deceased or attained alternate housing opportunities such as private property ownership;
434 applicants who have been earmarked for a new housing development project, subject to subsidy approvals and project completion; and
5,064 applicants who are still waiting for a housing opportunity.

Koff has enquired about her housing application repeatedly at the City’s housing office on Wale Street, but she said the last time she went – a few years ago – the housing officials could not provide her with any updates.

“They say, there’s still nothing for me,” says Koff.

Approved, but where is the house?

Priority is given by the year of application, according to Human Settlements Councillor Carl Pophaim. People get off the waiting list by qualifying for various types of housing projects. As soon as someone qualifies, they are notified and move on with the necessary approvals.

However, even people who have been approved have not received their allocated home. Jillian Mtshayi applied in 1993, was approved for a house in 2009, and allocated one in 2014 in the Hague/Roosendal development in Delft.

She attended a mandatory beneficiary workshop in April 2014, but in the end did not receive her house. The City told her that Delft houses were for Delft residents only, she says, and her application was removed.

She then reapplied and was approved for a house in 2016 in Eerste River. But this was later denied, because she was told she “already had a house” in Delft.

“Now I must drink this tablet – a stress and depression pill,” Mtshayi said. “I don’t need a tablet. I need a place in the house I applied for.”

Pophaim said he could not understand how this happened to Mtshayi and invited her to contact him. She said she did so on 11 September, but he has yet to respond.

Brenda Solomons applied for housing in 1999. In 2021, she was finally approved for a house in the Beacon Valley development in Mitchells Plain. But the project was cancelled in 2022 due to extortion, and she has not been given a home in any other development.

“The excitement is just taken away in a split second,” Solomons said. “It’s like somebody poured cold, icy water over you. Because where to go now, what to do?”

Clive Maart applied for housing in 1991 and had sporadic communication with the City housing officials. But he has been told, he says, he is ineligible because his wife has a house in her name from her late husband.

But his wife has no access to this house, and it has not been transferred to her name. The housing office said he would need to divorce her and apply for a house of his own. But he refuses to do his as it is against his religion.

Manenberg Ward Councillor Mogamat Cassiem said the City’s housing budget relies on funding from the national treasury, which he said makes it difficult to build the number of houses that are actually needed.

“Our vision is to see that people are given that basic decency and the dignity of having a home. The challenge is that we’re always restricted by budgets.”

City figures

The post How bureaucracy prevents people from getting houses appeared first on Vuka News.

It has taken more than a year to rezone land for the relocation of these households living in the rail reserve of the Central Line in Langa. Photo: Sandiso Phaliso

More than 1,000 households are still living in the rail reserve alongside the Central Line in Langa.
PRASA is trying to relocate them to land alongside Jakes Gerwel Drive, on the western edge of Mitchells Plain.
It has taken more than a year so far for the necessary land rezoning processes to be completed.
PRASA is also caught up in the rezoning process at a separate temporary relocation site at Stock Road, Philippi. There more than 700 households who were living in shacks built on the Central Line in Philippi, have already been relocated.

Attempts to move thousands of people living within the rail reserve along the Central Line in Langa, to land next to Mitchells Plain, have been held up for more than a year by the rezoning processes.

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) owns the land alongside the railway line. About 1,200 households have been living there since building homes during the Covid lockdowns. PRASA is attempting to move them to two portions of land known as the Philippi Wedge between Philippi and Mitchells Plain.

PRASA, through the Housing Development Agency (HDA), acquired the land from a private owner, and in August last year submitted applications to the City of Cape Town for the properties to be changed from Agricultural to Single Residential zoning.

The move has been strongly opposed by Mitchells Plain residents, with more than 900 comments registered during the required public comment period on the rezoning during October and November last year.

City mayco member for planning and spatial development, Eddie Andrews, said the City had asked PRASA for additional information, and “two reports are still being finalised”.

Andrews told GroundUp the reports’ recommendations will become public when they come to the Municipal Planning Tribunal.

But the lack of progress is causing frustration among the people living in the rail reserve, who say they lack access to water and electricity, and their living conditions are deteriorating.

“The process was taking too long to finalise as was anticipated. We had imagined that by now we would be staying on that Philippi Wedge but that is not the case,” said Thembekile Njova, who lives in the Langa railway reserve.

“This process is not getting the urgency it deserves because living here (in the railway reserves) is a disaster, and children cannot grow under such circumstances,” said Njova.

Stock Road site

Early this year, the relocation of more than 700 households who had built shacks on and next to the Central Line in Philippi, were moved to PRASA-owned land next to the Stock Road station.

PRASA undertook the move without finalising the required rezoning process for the land, for which they were fined R25,000 by the City for contravention of applicable by-laws.

This rezoning application, which has also been delayed by PRASA needing to submit additional information to the City, is now undergoing a 30-day circulation process to internal City of Cape Town departments for comment.

The initial deadline given for the rezoning application was 22 January, but PRASA applied for a 60-day extension until 22 March. Then PRASA asked for a further extension until the end of July.

A notice for public comment has also been advertised and circulated to the relevant ward councillors and subcouncils, as well as abutting property owners and other interested parties. The closing date for public comment is 21 October.

The purpose of the application is to permit a temporary decanting site for informal dwellers occupying 719 temporary shelters.

“The City received the last outstanding information related to this application on 2 October 2024,” said Andrews.

A resident living on the Stock Road site, Lunga Thokoza, said they were living in inhumane conditions and the sooner these processes were finalised the better. “Here we are boxed in between railway lines and it is difficult for cars to come and leave this area. People cannot live under such circumstances. We feel we have been dumped here to fend for ourselves. There are no water taps or electricity connections,” said Thokoza.

People moved to the Stock Road site have previously protested over insufficient access to water and sanitation services.

The post Relocation of Langa rail line occupiers delayed by regulations appeared first on Vuka News.

Learn about the history of the Communal Land Rights Act, why it was declared unconstitutional, and the role of the Legal Resources Centre in securing land rights for millions of South Africans.

What is the History of Land Tenure for Black South Africans During Apartheid?

The history of land tenure for black South Africans during apartheid is one of dispossession and inequality. Under apartheid, black South Africans were forced to live in segregated areas called Bantustans or homelands. In these areas, they were denied the right to own land freely and were instead subject to the control of traditional leaders or government-appointed chiefs. This system of land tenure reinforced apartheid’s racial segregation and left millions of black South Africans in poverty, with limited access to resources.

Land tenure in South Africa was a major tool of apartheid. It restricted black South Africans’ ability to own or use land, which in turn affected their livelihoods and economic opportunities. The legacy of these policies is still felt today, as many people in rural areas continue to live without secure land rights.

What the Communal Land Rights Act Tried to Do

The Communal Land Rights Act (CLaRA), introduced in 2004, was an attempt by the South African government to address the historical injustices of apartheid land policies. The law aimed to give land rights to millions of people living in rural, communal areas. These areas were home to many black South Africans who had suffered from insecure land tenure due to apartheid’s racially discriminatory laws.

The government framed CLaRA as a way to provide people with legally secure land tenure, as promised by Section 25(6) of the South African Constitution. The law was designed to transfer land ownership from the state to local communities, giving them the ability to make decisions about how the land was used and managed.

Why the Communal Land Rights Act Failed

Despite its good intentions, the Communal Land Rights Act (CLaRA) ultimately failed to deliver on its promises. Instead of empowering communities, the law gave too much power to traditional councils—similar to the tribal authorities that existed during apartheid. These councils were granted broad control over the land, including its use, administration, and occupation. As a result, the people living on communal land had little to no say in how their land was managed, undermining the goal of secure land tenure.

Many rural communities opposed CLaRA because it concentrated power in the hands of traditional leaders, often at the expense of the broader community, especially women. Rather than solving the problem of insecure land tenure, CLaRA threatened to entrench the same apartheid-era power structures it sought to dismantle.

After years of opposition, the Constitutional Court declared CLaRA unconstitutional in 2010. The court found that Parliament had not followed the correct process when passing the law, failing to involve provincial legislatures in deliberations that affected customary land rights. This lack of proper consultation, particularly with the rural people most affected by the law, led to its downfall.

The Legal Resources Centre’s Role in Proving the Act Unconstitutional

The Legal Resources Centre (LRC) played a pivotal role in challenging the constitutionality of the Communal Land Rights Act. From the start, the LRC worked closely with rural communities to advocate for their land rights. Over the course of seven years, the LRC fought tirelessly in court to prove that CLaRA was unconstitutional, arguing that it failed to protect the land rights of millions of South Africans.

In May 2010, the Constitutional Court ruled in favor of the LRC’s clients, declaring CLaRA unconstitutional. This landmark decision impacted the lives of over 21 million people living on communal land in South Africa. The LRC’s efforts not only struck down CLaRA but also reshaped the legal landscape of land governance, empowering communities to have a greater say in their land rights and protecting them from traditional councils’ unchecked control.

Why This is a Massive Problem in South Africa

The failure of the Communal Land Rights Act is part of a larger issue of land tenure insecurity in South Africa. Millions of people, especially in rural areas, continue to live without secure land rights. This insecurity leaves them vulnerable to displacement and prevents them from fully benefiting from their land.

Without legally recognized land rights, rural communities cannot make long-term investments in their land, such as building homes or improving agricultural practices. This lack of security hinders economic development in some of South Africa’s poorest areas, further entrenching poverty and inequality.

Land tenure insecurity also discourages investment in rural areas, as potential investors are hesitant to commit resources to land without clear ownership or legal recognition. As a result, the economic potential of these areas remains untapped, leaving communities trapped in a cycle of poverty.

The Prevailing Insecurity of Land Tenure in South Africa

Despite the Constitutional Court’s ruling in 2010, the issue of land tenure insecurity persists in South Africa. To this day, there is no comprehensive legislation that provides secure land rights for rural people, particularly those living in the former Bantustans. The lack of legal clarity around land ownership continues to create challenges for millions of South Africans.

The government has yet to replace CLaRA with a new law that guarantees secure land tenure for all. This has left rural people in limbo, waiting for laws that will protect their rights and provide the legal security they need to invest in their land and improve their lives.

To ensure that land reform in South Africa is fair and effective, future legislation must involve meaningful consultation with rural communities, especially women. The voices of traditional leaders should not dominate the conversation, and the process must prioritize the rights of the people living on the land.

The post Communal Land Rights Act: A Landmark Case for Land Tenure appeared first on Vuka News.

If the new inner city development plan is put into action, more people who work in the city centre will be able to live in it, instead of commuting each day. Photos: Steve Kretzmann

According to the new Local Spatial Development Framework for Cape Town, about 40,000 more people should be accommodated in the inner city by 2040.
This is because of population growth and the need for people to live near where they work.
The plan says increasing housing will also make the inner city more vibrant.
Key elements in the plan are pedestrian streets and the maintenance of links between the mountain and the sea.

A new framework for development of Cape Town’s inner city sets out plans to accommodate about 40,000 more residents in a greener and more pedestrian-friendly environment over the next 15 years.

The new Local Spatial Development Framework currently open for public comment, states that property in the inner city is unaffordable for 90% of Cape Town households who need accommodation. People who work in the inner city cannot even afford inner city rentals, and more than 70% of accommodation in the area is targeted at tourists. This includes guesthouses, flats let out for short-term rental through AirBnB, and hotels.

The inner city is the area between the Foreshore to the north and Orange Street in the south, and from Tennant Street in the east to Buitengracht Street and De Waterkant in the west.

According to the plan, there were 6,700 people living in this area in 2022. By 2040, the inner city needs to accommodate between 40,000 and 50,000 people, the plan says. This is because of population growth in Cape Town, and the need to give people – including working class people – the ability to live close to where they work. This will also contribute to the vibrancy of the inner city outside normal working hours. Currently, most of the city centre’s streets are almost deserted after 6pm and from Saturday afternoon until Monday morning.

While there is a huge demand for long-term accommodation in the inner city, especially among young people, there is not enough long-term rental supply, making it “extremely difficult to find affordable rental accommodation within the central city”. Affordable accommodation is defined as accommodation that households earning R22,500 or less per month can afford.

Since the Covid pandemic, demand for office space has been reduced, and office buildings can be retrofitted for residential use. New residential building is also needed, as the plan notes projected tourism growth will further limit the availability of long-term rentals. It also notes there are no policies to manage short-term rentals for tourists and the impact this has on the availability of accommodation for Capetonians.

In order to meet the challenge of increased supply and affordability, the plan says policy responses should target economic growth and increased employment to boost household income; there should be “general provision” of housing for all economic markets, along with “dealing with informality and homelessness”; and expanding spaces for “vulnerable people” to seek shelter in and around the inner city.

The plan suggests using underdeveloped and under-utilised parcels of land to achieve this. “It is imperative to create an inclusive residential affordability ladder,” notes the plan.

Housing developments

The plan provides a schedule of 23 residential development opportunities on public land in the inner city owned by the City, Western Cape Government, PRASA, and Transnet. These would supply an additional 18,000 residential units in the inner city, and are currently in various phases, ranging from identification to procurement.

The largest of these is a “mixed-market affordable housing development” on City-owned land forming part of the Foreshore Gateway Precinct, offering 3,480 residential units. Also on City-owned land, the Foreshore Freeways Precinct Development Project would offer 3,000 residential units. However, a study on the Foreshore Freeway Precinct, which has historically been a headache for the City, is not yet available to the public.

Also notable is the availability of two erven owned by the Western Cape Government at Prestwich Street in De Waterkant offering 1,080 residential units in a mixed use development. There are also a potential 1,785 residential units as part of a mixed-use development at Founder’s Gardens in Roggebaai, also on Western Cape Government land.

PRASA has two sites, the Ford showroom at Old Marine Drive, and the station deck, which could be developed to provide 1,135 and 1,479 residential units respectively.

Numerous other smaller sites of state-owned land are situated throughout the inner city.

The city’s pedestrian-friendly city blocks must be protected, the plan says.

The “unique setting and character” of the inner city is what makes it attractive to businesses, but the number of people who work in these businesses – more than other areas in the metropole – also drives demand for residential accommodation, which drives up property values. While City planners want to retain the inner city’s attractiveness for business in order to maintain and increase economic activity, this needs to be balanced with the need for tens of thousands more residential units while also protecting heritage and “upholding principles of good design”, the plan says.

The plan says it is important to protect the “fine grain” of the inner-city’s pedestrian-friendly city blocks between Riebeeck Street and Buitensingel Streets. The Foreshore, however, developed since the 1950s, consists of imposing city blocks and, with the unfinished freeways, is a challenge to the City’s vision of pedestrian-friendly blocks with interlinked public spaces. Given its existing characteristics, it is cited for skyscraper developments of 90m and higher. However, these need to be individually assessed for their shadow impact, impact on surrounding heritage features, and should be street friendly, with the towering upper storeys recessed from the street.

Mountain to sea

One of the key elements in the plan is establishing, or maintaining, links between the mountain and the sea, which is part of Cape Town’s unique sense of place. Where corridors cannot offer physical access due to the harbour, there should at least be visual links, the plan says.

Various parts of the inner city should become pedestrianised, such as Longmarket and Shortmarket streets which provide an east-west link between District Six and the Bo-Kaap, Long Street, and upper Bree Street, now known as “Breecinct”.

The provision of parking over public spaces (such as Harrington Square in the East City Precinct, and Heritage Square off Buitengracht Street) is discouraged, and a maximum number of parking bays need to be stipulated for new developments. Instead of catering for cars, the focus is on public transport, including micro-mobility in the inner city through tuk-tuks or other hyper-local solutions, with visitors from the suburbs being able to use park-and-ride options on the outskirts of the inner city.

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The post Mining corporates must fulfil their human rights responsibilities in SA appeared first on Corruption Watch.

By Refilwe Chulu – IN SUMMARY:

• Corporations increasingly threaten human rights, prioritizing profits over ethical practices.
• Human rights violations are common in all business sectors, especially mining.
• Mining in rural South Africa disrupts communities dependent on land and livestock.
• Communities face land deprivation, environmental damage, and biodiversity loss due to mining.
• Rural protests highlight dissatisfaction with mining’s impact on the environment and livelihoods.
• Examples include Marikana, Ikwezi coal mine protests, and Xolobeni’s decade-long campaign against mining.
• Communities demand meaningful consultation and consent before mining starts.
• Corporations’ economic power weakens government authority, especially in developing nations.
• South Africa lacks specific laws to hold businesses accountable for human rights violations.
• The UN Guiding Principles (UNGP) call for businesses to respect human rights and contribute to global goals.
• The South African Human Rights Commission promotes corporate responsibility in human rights.BHRDD (Business and Human Rights Due Diligence) could address human rights violations by enhancing transparency and accountability.
• BHRDD helps prevent corruption and ensures ethical corporate behaviour.
• It focuses on companies’ efforts to prevent harm rather than just outcomes.
• There’s a need for laws ensuring mining companies respect human rights and act responsibly.
• Governments should hold businesses accountable, ensuring their operations align with constitutional values.

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