Macassar Village Land Occupation

The squatter's movement Abahlali baseMjondolo occupied a piece of vacant state owned land in Macassar Village, near Somerset West outside of Cape Town on 18 May 2009. The occupation was later destroyed by the city's anti-land invasion unit.

Background

Before occupying the land Abahlali baseMjondolo organised an open and public 'cleaning campaign' on the land during which the land was cleared.^[1] On the day of the occupation four people, including prominent academic Martin Legassick were arrested.^[2] The arrests, which were accompanied by shooting with rubber bullets, followed two attempts by the occupiers to barricade the N2 in protest at the demolition of their shacks by the police.^[3] The Cape Times quoted Clarissa Benjamin, a 47-year old mother of three as saying "We have no place to stay. The government has millions to spend on building stadiums for 2010, but I have been waiting for a house for the past 20 years.".^[4]

Bush Radio reported that^[5] the local councillor had agreed, on 20 May, to hand the land over to the residents on 21 May and that the occupiers expected Cape Town Mayor Dan Plato to hand the land over in person. However the City of Cape Town sent in its Anti-Land Invasions Unit to demolish the shacks on 21 May.^[6] According to Abahlali baseMjondolo the City demolished the shacks on the land each day since the land was occupied and the occupiers rebuilt their shacks each day.^[7][8] Because the City had no court orders for any of these demolitions they were, according to an article in the Cape Argus, "in strict legal terms, criminal".^[9]

Responses

Professor Martin Legassick commented that "If housing cannot be provided immediately for all, people must be allowed to find land on which to build shacks, whether that land is municipal, state, provincial or private."^[10] Mayor Dan Plato argued that "certain elements had orchestrated the land invasion through misinformation" and that 'If the group was allowed to squat there, they would "start shouting for services" such as electricity and toilets.^[11]

Legal action

On 29 May Abahlali baseMjondolo secured an urgent interdict in the Cape High Court that prevented the City Council from demolishing any shacks without an order of the court.^[12] However the City ignored the interdict and continued to demolish shacks. On 1 June 2009 Mzonke Poni, chairperson of Abahlali baseMjondolo in the Western Cape, was arrested on a charge of public violence.^[13] He alleged that he was assaulted by the police while in their custody.^[14]

Support for the occupation

On 9 June the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions in Geneva issued a letter strongly condemning the actions of the Cape Town City Council.^[15] The following day the occupation received a strong statement of support from The Catholic Justice and Peace Commission.^[16] On 16 June 2009 Abahlali baseMjondolo Cape Town held an event to 'de-celebrate' the national public holiday of Youth Day.^[17] At the time the Cape Argus reported that one of the people evicted from Macassar was sharing a single roomed backyard shack with 26 other people.^[18]

Legal Controversy

On 18 June the City of Cape Town terminated its working relationship with the legal firm that had represented the occupiers^[19] resulting in a 'storm'^[20] of harsh criticism from human rights advocates.^[21]

Outcomes

During 2009 the land occupation continued under 24-hour surveillance from the Anti-Land Invasions Unit,^[22] which had just received R10 million in funding from the Cape Town City Council.^[23] Although people continued to live on the land they were not able to rebuild their shacks and were sleeping out in the open.^[24]

Notes and references

Political history of South Africa Defunct polities Kingdom of Mapungubwe (c. 1075–c. 1220) Dutch Cape Colony (1652–1806) Mthethwa Paramountcy (c. 1780–1817) Ndwandwe Kingdom (c. 1780–1819) Cape Colony (1795–1910) Zulu Kingdom (1816–1897) Natalia Republic (1839–1843) Natal Colony (1843–1910) Orange Free State (1854–1902) South African Republic (1856–1902) Griqualand East (1861–1879) Griqualand West (1870–1873) Goshen (1882–1883) Stellaland (1882–1885) Nieuwe Republiek (1884–1888) Upingtonia (1885–1887) Klein Vrystaat (1886–1891) Orange River Colony (1902–1910) Transvaal Colony (1902–1910) Union of South Africa (1910–1961) Transkei (1976–1994) Bophuthatswana (1977–1994) Venda (1979–1994) Ciskei (1981–1994) Events 1652–1815 Dutch settlement French Huguenot settlement Khoikhoi–Dutch Wars Xhosa Wars Battle of Muizenberg Battle of Blaauwberg Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 1815–1910 Mfecane 1820 Settlers Great Trek Boer Republics Mineral Revolution Witwatersrand Gold Rush South African Wars South Africa Act 1909 1910–1948 Maritz Rebellion Rand Rebellion Great Depression 1946 African Mine Workers' Union strike Bantustans Apartheid era 1948 general election Apartheid legislation Internal resistance Coloured-vote constitutional crisis Defiance Campaign Congress of the People Freedom Charter Sharpeville massacre 1960 republic referendum International isolation Academic boycott Disinvestment Oil embargo Sporting boycott Rivonia Trial Tar Baby Option Durban Moment Border War Israeli alliance Israel–South Africa Agreement Soweto Uprising Weapons of mass destruction Project Coast Constructive engagement Church Street bombing 1983 constitutional reform referendum Third Force CODESA 1992 apartheid referendum Saint James Church massacre Bophuthatswana conflict Shell House massacre Post-apartheid 1994 general election Government of National Unity Reconstruction and Development Programme Truth and Reconciliation Commission Arms Deal African Renaissance Xenophobia Marikana miners' strike 2012 Western Cape farm workers' strike Nkandlagate 2014 platinum strike Political culture Afrikaner Calvinism Baasskap Boerehaat Day of the Vow Greater South Africa Honorary whites Rooi gevaar Slavery Swart gevaar Uitlander Volkstaat Defunct organisations Civic and political organisations Afrikaner Bond Afrikaner Broederbond Afrikaner Party AITUP APO AVF BPC Black Sash CDA CTEG COD Congress Alliance COSG CP Dominion Party DP (1973–1977) DP (1989–2000) DPP ECC FA FD Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners GNP Het Volk HNP ID IP ISL Jeugkrag Johannesburg Reform Committee Labour Party (1910–1958) Labour Party (1969–1994) Liberal Party NA NCP NIC NLP NNP NP NPP NRP NUSAS PFP Progressive Party (Cape Colony) Progressive Party PRP Radio Freedom Reform Party SABP SADECO SAIC SASO SAYCO SAYRCO South African Party (Cape Colony) South African Party (1911–1934) South African Party (1977–1980) TNIP Torch Commando UFP United Party Unionist Party Volksparty Workers Party WOSA Trade unions and social movements APF BCM FOSATU ICU MUSA NEUM PAWE SAAPAWU UDF Umkosi Wezintaba Paramilitary and terrorist organisations APLA ARM BBB Boeremag Greyshirts MK Ossewabrandwag Orde van die Dood SANF Histories of political parties African National Congress Democratic Alliance Pan Africanist Congress of Azania Category

Coordinates: 34°03′01″S 18°45′20″E / 34.0503°S 18.7556°E / -34.0503; 18.7556