The housing crisis has been on the agenda in South Africa for many years. For the Government, in the courtroom, for NGO’s, and of course, for the millions who still don’t have adequate access to shelter or basic services. As migration continues to bring more and more people to the cities, the system is struggling to cope with those in need, and the promise of an inclusive constitution is being compromised as different levels of government try and find a way to house the millions living in the most difficult of circumstances. But communities all over the country are fighting back. And the LRC are there, helping them hold the government to a higher promise

NEW HOMES FOR THOUSANDS!!

For the past 10 years over 5,000 impoverished people, including women, children and the elderly have been living in desperate danger and abject poverty in shacks on either side of the main railway line in a Khayelitsha squatter camp North of Cape Town. During that time many people and have been seriously injured and a number of children killed or maimed.

In 2003 the owners of the railway land, the South African Rail Commuter Corporation, launched an application in the High Court seeking the eviction of the residents.

The Legal Resources Centre (LRC) was instructed to represent two of the committees to prevent the eviction.  The case was based on the precedent of  the Constitutional Court “Grootboom” judgment of 2000 which held that there was an obligation on the State to provide for those (like the railway line residents) who are desperately in need. When the case failed to come to Court  a settlement was reached on the basis that land would be made available for families to settle on under the emergency housing programme (a consequence of the Grootboom case).

The proposal became bogged down because of difficulties in finding land, meeting environmental challenges, and settling agreements and disagreements about entitlements to the land.  The difficult task of setting up services such as water, sewerage and electricity, due to be delivered by different organisations and other agencies, also held up the process.

In 2007 it became possible to move families but it was considered too dangerous because of a lack of lighting.  Also, the new arrivals had to be protected from shack dwelling neighbours, jealous of the newcomers sites, toilets and taps. Mediators and a substantial police presence with armoured cars kept a wary eye on the neighbours who had previously greeted newcomers with an unwelcome shower of rocks and stones.

The first of the families numbering between 50 to 70 finally moved in April 2008.  They began dismantling their railway line shacks, neatly stacking their walls, doors and windows onto the back of city authority trucks and were transported with their belongings to the new sites where they began reconstructing their homes that same day.

These sites, which provide security of tenure, are located approximately 5 kms from Cape Town at Bardale.Each family has been given a pegged plot and every five plots share water and ablution facilities. Long term plans will see a house built on each plot.

After waiting 10 years (see front page picture and the case report on page 15 )  the railway line residents in Khayelitsha began dismantling their shacks. Thanks to the Legal Resources Centre and Comic Relief.

They moved lock, stock and barrel onto their new sites, approximately 5 kms from Cape town at Bardale, where they began reconstructing their homes that same day.