After local government elections: Evictions and intimidation continue
Following last week's municipal elections in South Africa, Abahlali baseMjondolo have issued a statement on the threat posed by the eThekwini Municipality’s Land Invasion Unit.
On the day after the election, 19 May 2011, the eThekwini Municipality’s Land Invasion Unit arrived in our settlements. Mr Mdletshe from the Land Invasion Unit arrived with his team to demolish shacks in Arnett Drive, Reservoir Hills. When talking to residents there Mdletshe was very rude and violent to Abahlali. He pointed at Sam Jaca and threatened him saying he is the one that took him to the High Court. Mdletshe's team them demolished two shacks leaving the families homeless. They had no court order and were acting without any respect for the law, the court, the community or the families that they left homeless.
This is not the first time in recent weeks that Mdletshe has threatened our members. On the 1st of May 2011 an umhlali was brunt to death in eMmaus in Pinetown. On the 4th, 12th, 13th and 16th of May Mdletshe came to the eMmaus occupation to threaten residents and undermine them. When he was challenged he said that he does not speak to shack dwellers.
On Tuesday, 17 May 2011 Mdletshe's team went to our newly launched Abahlali branch in Intake View and threatened residents there with eviction.
Our Richmond Farm branch, by KwaMashu, was also visited on Thursday, 19 June 2011 and shacks were demolished without an Order of the Court.
It is not only our members that are under attack. On 20 May 2011, two days after the election, around thirty shacks were demolished in Mayville, Cato Manor leaving many people homeless. As usual there was no court order and the evictions were illegal and criminal acts. One family had been living in their shack since 1986.
We are told that we must vote for a better life. We are told that voting is the only legitimate way to make our complaints. We are told that voting is the way to make our voices count. But the day after we are expected to vote we are attacked violently and unlawfully by the government. Both the DA and the ANC treat the poor with the same lack of respect and the same lack of legality. We have sent messages of support to the people evicted from the Taflesig land occupation in Cape Town. Under the DA and the ANC there is no meaningful consultation with the poor. There is just violence, intimidation, destruction and contempt. Why must we vote for parties that are united in their decision to fight an illegal war against the poor? As we have said before there is no democracy for the poor in South Africa. The government thinks that it is above the law and that we are below the law. Our voices and our humanity count for nothing. This is why people are in rebellion all over the county.
In the Kennedy Road settlement intimidation continues. There is a R350 million road projects that has began and, as usual, development is being openly abused for party political purposes. As usual the local ANC members have been given control over employment on the project and, as usual, they demand ANC membership cards for community members to be employed. The contractor has also been threatened that their offices will be fire bombed if they employ any local community members without the approval of the local ANC. The situation is very volatile now.
Abahlali warn that this issue of the local ANC wanting control over all employment opportunities is precisely what sparked the attack on our movement in September 2009. We had developed a very fair way to allocate jobs. We did it via a lottery. The local ANC could not accept this. They demand ANC cards and public demonstrations of ANC support for access to jobs, fire relief, food parcels and houses. In 2009 and 2010 they were openly issuing death threats against our members and destroying their homes.
The new and elected leadership in Kennedy Road has approached the KRDC in exile to seek their support as they face this attack by local party leaders. We advise the newly elected councillor to intervene with fairness and transparency. If he believes in democracy he will clearly and publicly state that the local ANC has no right to only allow their own members to get jobs and he will take action to ensure that access to jobs is not controlled by the local party leaders.
Contact the Abahlali office on 031-3046420