Durban protests erupt in violence

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Durban protests erupt in violence
Carvin Goldstone
November 15 2005 at 09:00AM

Violent confrontations between police and residents of two informal settlements in Durban on Monday led to 45 people being arrested.

In Clare Estate, police baton-charged a group of about 2 000 people marching on Mayor Obed Mlaba’s office over the lack of housing for residents of the Foreman Road Informal Settlement.

Several people were injured when police opened fire with rubber bullets. Durban South police spokesperson Rani John said eight people had been charged and detained. The others were later released.

At Jamaica informal settlement in Umlazi’s F Section, police clashed with angry community members who were blockading roads to stop the eThekwini Municipality from disconnecting illegal water supplies.

The Foreman Road development committee embarked on a “no housing, no vote” campaign and marched illegally after the eThekwini Municipality had refused to allow the protest to take place.

A small police contingent initially tried in vain to stop the march. A few minutes later more police with riot shields arrived to assist in holding off the protesters. Police walked slowly into the crowd, then they suddenly began charging at the protesters, arresting people at random. Those arrested were crammed into police vans while others armed with rocks attacked the police, damaging their vehicles.

One of the protesters apparently fired a shot, but nobody was injured. Police then fired rubber bullets into the crowd and chased the angry mob down Loon Road. Several protesters were injured. One man, nursing a head wound, sat on the side of the road, bleeding profusely. John said the man had been injured by another protester. However, the man told bystanders that he had been injured by police.

Umlazi police spokesperson Khepo Ndlovu said the Metro Police, private security guards and SA Police Service members had escorted a water department team to Jamaica informal settlement to disconnect illegal water connections.

“An angry mob of community members from the area started blockading the road,” he said. Ndlovu said shots were fired by the community. Security personnel returned fire. A senior water official was slightly injured and two vehicles were damaged, he said. No arrests were made in this confrontation. After the ordeal, the water department team abandoned the assignment and left the area.

The latest incidents follow several other legal and illegal protests this year over the pace of service provision in Durban. Protesters have marched on municipal offices and occupied the offices of ward councillors who they feel are not delivering on election promises. The plight of the Foreman Road settlement has attracted the attention of human rights and civic groups.

The Freedom of Expression Institute and SA Human Rights Commission have criticised the eThekwini Municipality’s decision to ban Monday’s march – calling the ban illegal according the Gatherings Act of 1993. After the march was banned, a meeting between Mayor Mlaba, Deputy City Manager Derrick Naidoo and the Foreman Road development committee was held.

Lungisani Jama, a member of the committee, said Mlaba had promised to hold a meeting with the committee on November 24. Jama said the committee had agreed, but later decided to go ahead with the march despite losing a high court application against the city’s ban. Members of the community and civic groups blamed Mlaba for yesterday’s events. “If Mlaba had permitted the march none of this chaos would have happened,” said Jama.

Mlaba said he did not deal with the authorisation of permits for marches and the matter was being dealt with by Durban City Manager Michael Sutcliffe and Nigel Gumede, the Chairman of the housing committee. Gumede said the march had been discussed and an agreement reached that committee members would hold a meeting at which politicians and officials would explain plans for the Clare Estate informal settlements.

He said that another meeting was scheduled for November 24, when a presentation with milestones would be unveiled. There had been no more communication at the weekend and the city had understood that the march was cancelled and a mass meeting would take place instead, he said. “In the interpretation of police, they (the residents) were not granted a permit, so they were marching illegally. “If co-ordination took place then we would have notified the police,” he said.

Apparently no city officials were present to address the crowd which had gathered before the march began. Gumede said the city tried to treat every community equally when it came to services.
Neil Macleod, Head of eThek-wini Water and Sanitation, said this had not been the first time that they had experienced problems trying to disconnect illegal water supplies in Umlazi. Macleod said yesterday that his team had managed to remove some illegal connections. He added that illegal water connections in Umlazi cost the city R30-million a year.

“These connections are pipes joined from the city pipes and some of the connections are shocking,” he said. He said some people had indicated that they wanted to have legitimate connections.