Relief row between the city and evictees

By Chanel September
25 February 2008

A dispute over tents and the provision of relief aid has resulted in a row between the Delft-Symphony evictees and the City of Cape Town.

The disagreement erupted on Sunday after residents refused to accept the relief aid provided by the city, but instead only wanted humanitarian aid provided by the Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW), a non-governmental organisation.

According to the city’s mayoral committee member for housing, Dan Plato tents were erected by the IRW. He added that the IRW did not have permission to set up the tents.

“We asked them to remove the tents, they refused. As a result we decided to break down the tent, we cannot allow other agencies to come in to take over the city and government’s role,” says Plato.

However the anti-eviction campaign’s Ashraf Cassiem says that all aid is being refused to enter the area. “They are now isolating us from getting any aid unless it’s from the city,” Cassiem says.
“We are just trying to take control of the situation and one means is to prevent other agencies,” says Plato

“It’s extremely pathetic that NGO’s have been banned to enter the Delft area. People are living on the side of the road in windy conditions. One wonders what the motive and the agenda is,” says the IRW’s Achmat Kamalie.

According to the city’s structure policy the setting up all of structures including tents needs to be pre-approved by the disaster management services.

But Cassiem says that the residents rejected the relief because they feel the city participated in the eviction.

“The people’s mandate is that government and the city needs to provide people with houses and not tents,” says Cassiem.

Pictures: Anele Siwa