The Social Justice Coalition (SJC) notes the City of Cape Town’s press statement responding to a social audit conducted last week to probe the performance of Mshengu Services – a provider of more than 5000 communal chemical toilets in Cape Town’s informal settlements at a cost of R140 million to the municipal fiscus. The full…
City Officials Threatening to “Book Off” workers who “speak to the SJC” On Tuesday 19 March 2013, the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) was called to a protest organised by approximately 80 janitors in Enkanini, Khayelitsha. The janitors are employed by the City of Cape Town to maintain communal toilets and standpipes as part of the…
On Monday night, 4 February 2013, members of Equal Education (EE), the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) and the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) will march through the streets of Khayelitsha to demand adequate public lighting. The march will begin at 19h30 at the Town Two market, on the corner of Lansdowne Road and Spine Road. Marchers…
Statement from the University of Cape Town and Stellenbosch University on the breakdown in relations between the police and the Khayelitsha community It is deeply troubling that residents of Khayelitsha fear leaving their homes at night as a result of on-going violence and intimidation. Of concern too, is that despite the Khayelitsha community having campaigned…
Address by Imam Dr. A. Rashied Omar at a rally outside Parliament to deliver an Open Letter to President Zuma, Premier Zille, Minister Mthethwa and Mayor de Lille, Thursday 13 December 2012 Comrades and Friends, My Sisters and Brothers, I bring you greetings of peace from the Western Cape Religious Leaders Forum; and its…
On 12 December 2012 the Safety and Violence Initiative (SAVI) – a newly established unit at the University of Cape Town (UCT) – hosted a public seminar titled ‘Safety and Violence in Khayelitsha’. The purpose of the seminar was to provide a platform for discussion about the causes of a lack of safety and widespread…
A Call to Partners, Colleagues, Members of The Media, and Friends of the SJC: We Need Your Support To Bring Safety and Stability To Khayelitsha! As you are reading this, Minister of Police Nathi Mthethwa and others are preparing for a court battle in the Cape High Court tomorrow to prevent the Commission of Inquiry into policing in Khayelitsha…
On 14 November 2012 The Cape Times newspaper published a scathing editorial on sanitation in Cape Town and South Africa more broadly. This follows a feature article in the same edition which uncovers the dangers of using toilet facilities in Khayelitsha’s informal settlements, and local government failure to ensure the service works as it should. …
In August 2012 the O’Regan/Pikoli Commission of Inquiry was established to investigate allegations of ineffective policing and breakdown in relations between the police and the community in Khayelitsha. Its establishment followed sustained campaigning and advocacy by the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) and partner organisation over a number of years and the lodging of a formal…
Mthetwa To Go To Court In Attempt to Stall Commission of Inquiry into Policing in Khayelitsha On 29 October 2012, the O’Regan/Pikoli Commission of Inquiry (CoI), tasked with investigating problems with policing and crime in Khayelitsha, conducted its first hearing. Activists and members of the Social Justice Coalition, Treatment Action Campaign, Equal Education, Triangle Project…