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Residents of Covid casual settlement need CapeNature to assist them discover new land, however CapeNature says it isn’t their accountability
Covid is a casual settlement that was established on Driftsands Nature Reserve through the pandemic lockdowns. The reserve is managed by CapeNature.
The occupiers have been served with eviction notices and must vacate the land by 25 June.
On Monday about 400 Covid residents protested and a conflict with police ensued.
Police used rubber bullets to disperse protestors who had blocked the doorway to the Driftsands Nature Reserve on Monday night. Neighborhood members had been dragged away from the gate, and we noticed two neighborhood members being shot with rubber bullets. A minimum of 5 neighborhood members had been arrested, and Covid neighborhood chief Luthando Mncuntula handed himself over to the police.
About 400 residents of the Covid casual settlement, which is situated within the Driftsands Nature Reserve, sat down in entrance of the doorway to the Driftsands Nature Reserve Environmental Centre on Monday afternoon, stopping staff from coming into or leaving the premises.
They had been demanding that CapeNature representatives tackle their calls for for brand spanking new land to stay on.
Earlier in June the occupiers of this land close to Mfuleni had been served with eviction notices and had till 25 June to vacate the character reserve. Many of the settlement lies throughout the Driftsands Nature Reserve, which is run by CapeNature on behalf of the Western Cape Authorities.
Then, about 45 shacks within the settlement had been washed away in floods final week. Native and provincial governments don’t take into account the land protected for habitation.
Residents advised us that they’re prepared to maneuver from the reserve, however that CapeNature should establish land the place they will stay, service it, and assist them to maneuver. The Covid casual settlement was settled in 2020 through the pandemic lockdowns.
After we arrived at Driftsands at 2pm on Monday, some CapeNature staff who had left for lunch had been locked outdoors and couldn’t re-enter. Staff on the late shift additionally couldn’t get in. There have been vehicles idling outdoors.
Neighborhood chief Mncuntula advised GroundUp that they’d bounce over the fence and sleep contained in the reserve if nobody attended to them. He mentioned that they’d been attempting to have a gathering with CapeNature officers for months, however had been spurned.
Police and Regulation Enforcement tried to barter with residents to permit staff entry to the location, however residents sat down on the entrance.
After 4 hours, a consultant from CapeNature arrived and requested the protesting residents to write down down their grievances, which they had been advised could be despatched to the precise individuals. The CapeNature official advised the protestors that solely the Metropolis of Cape City and the Division of Human Settlements had been in a position to help them, not CapeNature.
However residents didn’t budge and gave the impression to be satisfied that CapeNature was the entity chargeable for addressing their plight.
Petro Van Rhyn, advocacy supervisor at CapeNature advised GroundUp that Monday’s occasions had been unlucky and that some employees had been traumatised.
Van Rhyn mentioned that CapeNature maintains an open line with the neighborhood and its management buildings. Earlier conferences with Covid residents had included discussions on the standing of the land as a nature reserve and its position in flood discount. They mentioned voluntary relocation to a safer web site inside Driftsands, significantly for these dwelling on the retention dam wall.
Van Rhyn mentioned that the Driftsands Nature Reserve is just not appropriate for human settlement because it consists of wetlands, the Kuils River and its banks, and flood discount infrastructure.
“CapeNature can not present primary providers – it isn’t the entity’s accountability, and the land use of nature conservation doesn’t enable for service supply,” mentioned Van Rhyn.
Malusi Booi, Mayco Member for Human Settlements, mentioned that the Metropolis is unable to cater for unplanned settlements like Covid, as they don’t seem to be budgeted for, and established casual settlements are prioritised by the Metropolis.
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