US land activist faces deportation

JOHANNESBURG -- Ann Eveleth, the US citizen arrested following land protests last week, was still in custody yesterday awaiting deportation, said Intelligence Minister Lindiwe Sisulu.

She said at a media briefing on the sidelines of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) here that Eveleth's grace period to apply for the government to deal with her immigration status would have expired late yesterday.

Eveleth, who is a spokeswoman for the National Land Committee, was arrested on Thursday while visiting a fellow land activist at the Kempton Park police station.

Sisulu said Eveleth's residence permit had expired in 2001.

If she applied within the three-day grace period to have her status reviewed, the Minister of Home Affairs would consider the request, Sisulu said.

* The Department of Home Affairs has undertaken not to deport Eveleth until her case was argued before the Pretoria High Court tomorrow her lawyer said.

Chris Watters told Sapa yesterday that acting director-general Ivan Lambinon had given him a written undertaking to this effect.

Documents aimed at securing Eveleth's release from jail were served on the Home Affairs and Safety and Security departments yesterday.

The application also aimed to prevent her deportation from South Africa until the issue of her status is resolved.

The Landless People's Movement (LPM) meanwhile has demanded Eveleth's release and threatened unspecified action if she remained in custody.

"If Ann Eveleth is not released immediately, the national assembly of the LPM will take a decision on what action to undertake. We shall not be intimidated and we shall not be silenced," the LPM said in a statement.

"The LPM hereby calls upon the responsible authorities, including the Minister of Home Affairs Mangosuthu Buthelezi, to immediately release our friend and comrade Ann Eveleth from detention."

Eveleth, a US national, has lived in the country for several years.

Eveleth was reportedly in the process of applying for an extension to her temporary residence permit when she was arrested.

In its statement, the LPM said its interim national council met in Soweto on Sunday to discuss "the harassment meted against the LPM and its sympathisers".

The group said Eveleth's arrest was "nothing but the continuation and intensification of the harassment of the LPM by the state" which was designed to "intimidate" and "disrupt" its protests during the World Summit.

"The LPM will not be deterred, all activities will go on as planned." -- Sapa

Statement on Western Cape Housing Backlog

IN AN EFFORT TO ELIMINATE WESTERN CAPE HOUSING BACKLOG PROVINCIAL CABINET APPOINTS TECHNICAL TASK TEAM

The Western Cape Cabinet today devoted quality time to a discussion on the housing crisis in the Western Cape. Cabinet reiterated its deep concern that the housing backlog in our province will not be eliminated without visionary leadership and an extra-ordinary effort from all possible role-players. As a new provincial government, we believe we have already moved significantly to contribute to a solution by increasing our housing budget by about R130 million per year for the next 3 years - bringing our total investment for this period to R1,2 billion.

The problem will not be solved overnight or even within 3 years. But we cannot wait for 20 years to house our people. We, therefore, welcome the change of heart by the DA-run Unicity who now appears to be sharing our concern about the housing backlog. We believe we should co-operate with national and all local governments, the private sector, NGOs and communities in order to tackle the housing challenge and to shorten the waiting period. If we integrate our plans, pool our resources and co-operate generally, then we will give hope to the homeless.

In doing so, Cabinet supports the view of the Premier, Mr Peter Marais, that we are not interested in following the old apartheid planning models of dormitory black townships. In this regard, the media portrayal of a "Noweto" is unfortunate. We want a comprehensive approach to the establishment of racially integrated, economically viable and socially stable communities in the Metro and non-Metro areas. This will be a new model for building a prosperous and united nation.

We need as a matter of urgency to confirm the magnitude of the challenge: the exact number of the homeless, the distribution between rural and urban and between economic and sub-economic.

To this end, Cabinet has appointed a Technical Task Team under the Director-General, Dr G Lawrence, to interact with the Unicity and other councils to compile a status report, within 30 days, to determine the need, assess which plans exist for housing, and what the total available resources are at our disposal.

This will be the basis for further action by the Western Cape Government in partnership with all other role-players.

Issued by: Office of the Premier, Western Cape, 22 May 2002

W Cape extends lifeline to shack dwellers

The Western Cape has extended a lifeline to informal settlement dwellers to achieve former president Nelson Mandela's vision of upliftment of impoverished areas.

The Integrated Serviced Land Project, a housing project which has seen 22 500 houses and 18 new schools being built in the Western Cape in the past three years, will be extended for a further three years to help tackle the province's growing housing waiting list.

The new lease of life for the project was announced by provincial MEC for Housing Nomatyala Hangana during her budget speech in the provincial legislature. She said the project was the most successful of its kind in the country, which is what had prompted the provincial cabinet to extend its life to April 2005.

In 1994 Mandela identified informal settlements across the country for reconstruction and development, including, in the Western Cape, Gugulethu, Langa, Nyanga, Philippi East, Brown's Farm, South Delft, KTC, Crossroads, Weltevreden Valley, Driftsands and Millers Camp.

In Cape Town the Integrated Serviced Land Project operates in the area bounded by the N2 highway, Vanguard Drive and the R300, as well as Langa and Southern Delft.

Hangana endorsed the programme by listing its successes:

Over 22 500 houses built. A further 9 000 serviced sites either ready for houses or under construction. Eighteen new schools and 15 upgraded schools - a total of 623 classrooms, with 34 under construction. Three new community health centres and one trauma centre. Ten upgraded health facilities - with one new health centre under construction. Eleven community halls, five sports fields and a swimming pool. Three libraries with one more under construction. A total of 52 capacity-building projects, managed by various departments within the province and city. An early childhood development resource project, that will provide training from six special resource centres that will be built soon. Economic development initiatives, particularly associated with Philippi East. Hangana said: "Although this project has served as an example to us and has continuously proved and highlighted the importance of integrated development, we still have a long way to go."

Cape Argus

(Cannabis sativa L.) varieties in Northwest Province, South Africa