Cape Town - Protesters from the Du Noon informal settlement clashed violently with police on Friday morning, forcing authorities to close the N7 and Potsdam Road.
The protest was over housing, and protesters have called for the land occupied by Killarney racetrack to be made available for settlement.
At rush hour, traffic was diverted away from where thousands of protesters had gathered in Potsdam Road near Killarney Gardens, causing an enormous traffic jam.
A march on City of Cape Town offices at the Paddocks was approved by the city for 9am, and protesters gathered on the N7 and Potsdam from 4am. Police at the scene were pelted with stones, and they retaliated with rubber bullets and stun grenades.
Some protesters forced Du Noon residents who were on their way to work to join the march.
The Cape Argus witnessed an assault on one of these commuters, which left him with a bloody gash on his head.
“We urged people at all the community meetings leading up to today to remain peaceful. Unfortunately, when there are crowds as big as this, violent people think that they can get away with these sorts of actions,” said South African National civics Organisation (Sanco) member Joel Ludziya.
Sanco appeared to be the driving force behind the protest, with Bulelwa Mayende, Sanco’s branch secretary for Du Noon, speaking on behalf of residents.
She said the protests would escalate and be brought to the city centre if the city did not respond to their demands within 21 days of today’s march.
The demands related generally to the lack of housing, crime, poor service delivery and sanitation.
Resident Noluthando Ludziya said shack dwellers wanted an answer on the future of the land being used as the Western Province Motor Club’s Killarney racetrack.
They claimed the contract between the club and the city for the usage of this land ends next year and have demanded that the land become available for settlement and housing.
“There are many other pieces of land in ward 104, and we want the city to make those available as well. Our conditions are really terrible. The city should build houses in Du Noon, and make other land available for people to settle on while they wait. That is what we are asking for,” Ludziya said.
Police spokesman Captain FC van Wyk said police remained at the scene and no arrests had been made.
The roads were reopened shortly before 10am on Friday, but some businesses in Du Noon closed for the day.
Simcelile Fatman said: “There’s a lot of solidarity within the community... Most people have given up on going to work today to show support. We are all affected by the same conditions.”
The City’s JP Smith said the local clinic had been forced to close because of the protests: “This means that no one in the area has access to health care until the protest subsides.”
- Cape Argus
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