Land awarded to Macassar Village residents

By Cindy Witten
21 March 2009

Macassar Village residents together with the Anti-Eviction Campaign (AEC) are celebrating the decision to award community members with land. This after two days of sleeping outside in protest.

According to a statement sent by the AEC, a Macassar police superintendent facilitated negotiations between residents and a local ward counsellor.
"During the day today (Wednesday) the Superintendent from Macassar Police station asked people to elect four people to go to negotiate with a local ward counsellor for a piece of land which is nearby the land that people had occupied, after 3 hours of negotiation between people and the ward counsellor it was agreed that people can build on that land which is 10 meters away from the land that people had occupied," it said.

The AEC says that community members have already begun building their new structures. Cape Town Mayor, Dan Plato, accompanied by municipal officers, is expected to visit Macassar Village this morning to officially hand over the land.