A complex and full day which will require lots of discussion between lots of people to piece together properly. Here are the bones of some it.

Morning

S'bu Zikode is able to visit the Kennedy 5 on the 9th day of their hunger strike. They are in a very high secure ward, about 7 security doors to get through. The prison officials hope that S'bu will persuade them to stop the hunger strike. The requests from the prison's nurses and social workers have failed. S'bu finds the 5 to be very weak, 3 cannot stand any longer. The other two can only stand for a few minutes. They make it clear that they will stay on hunger strike until they are released or they will die in prison. They will give no consent to their arrest. S'bu asks the prison officials how they will get to court on Friday for the bail hearing when already 3 of the 5 can't stand and so they clearly can't be thrown into the usual van where, as he knows well enough, everyone is bumped around between the cells and the court. The officials say it is not their responsibility.

Early to mid afternoon

Glen Nayger phones S'bu, insults him and says 'You rouges think you are too clever but the march is banned'. S'bu immediately goes to see the relevant police officials to find out if this is true. They say that City Manager Mike Sutcliffe has refused to give permission because S'bu failed to attend the meeting scheduled to discuss the march. S'bu explains that he did in fact attend that meeting. They say that he didn't it. After a while it turns out that a clever trick was played. The meeting was scheduled for Friday in the city's offices. On Thursday officers from Crime Intelligence had phoned to say that the meeting had been moved to Kennedy Road. S'bu Zikode and Anton Zamisa attended the meeting with the officers from Crime Intelligence at Kennedy Road taking minutes and the officers' names, rank and numbers etc. Now the City claimed that other police officers were waiting for S'bu to attend the meeting to happen in town but that he failed to do so and so on this basis Sutcliffe has denied permission . The Crime Intelligence officers confirm that they attended a meeting in Kennedy Road and that this was presented as the official meeting for the march. The police officials are informed from above that Sutcliffe's ban stands. S'bu receives a warning that Sutcliffe has instructed that he should be arrested if the march proceeds.

Late afternoon

A lawyer is looked for in order to interdict the city once again to overturn the march ban. Shanta Reddy offers help. It's after 5 by the time the meeting with the advocate really gets under way and the march is scheduled for 6. After carefully going through everything the advocate concludes that it may be risky to go to court with an urgent application on the basis that the judge may agree, despite the obvious trickery, that the 'real' meeting was not attended because the police officer in charge of march authorisation in the city was not present at the 'fake' meeting called by Crime Intelligence. It is decided to return to the settlement where people are gathering for the march. On the way back Nayager phones S'bu and threatens him and demands an assurance that the march will not happen. S'bu tells Nayager that the memorandum will be delivered to him tonight as planned. Another calls comes through, this time from David Ntseng, to say that a police helicopter is circling low over the settlement.

Early evening

People start arriving at Kennedy Road for the march. People come from Pinetown and Pietermaritzburg as well as Wards 23 and 25 in Durban. Nayager arrives at Kennedy Road in his BMW with back up. S'bu, Philani Zungu and a priest who has come to support the march as well as Pume from the DDP go to the office under the hall to negotiate. It isn't long since Nayager's brutal assault on S'bu and Philani. In the hall people sing and dance making sure that Nayager can hear their power underneath. There are lots of journalists there. The mood is angry and defiant. After almost two hours the meeting is over and S'bu addresses everyone. He explains that Nayager had insisted that there could not be any sort of protest at all because Mike Sutcliffe had not given permission but that Philani had bought out a copy of the Gatherings Act and shown Nayager that it is legally acceptable for less than 15 people to march at any time and without permission. At first Nayager disputes this and repeats that there can be no march without Sutcliffe's approval. But eventually he has to concede Philani's point. 14 people are chosen to take the memorandum to Nayager. It's 2 priests and 12 Bahlali - 8 women and 4 men. The journalists leave. The group of 14 go up to the police station. They kneel at the gate with lit candles in the posture of prayer. Nayager stands at the entrance with 4 armed men in bullet proof vests and another who videos everything for the police. Fazel Khan stands right up against the police camera man and films it all for Abahlali - its lens to lens, gaze to gaze. With his 13 comrades behind him S'bu, standing eyeball to eyeball with Nayager, reads the memorandum to Nayager. The spiritual power of the event is extraordinary.

The delegation of 14 return to Kennedy Road and the video of the whole event is screened to the waiting people. People are deeply moved and inspired. There is huge cheering as everyone sees the video footage of Nayager accepting and signing for the memorandum. Abahalali claim a victory.

Tomorrow Bishop Reuben Phillip will visit the hunger strikers.

There are 5 photographs on homepage of the Abahlali website. http://www.abahlali.org

More pictures to come. Video too.

And more struggle to come.