Cape Town: 10 vans of city police arrive in Zille Raine Heights to break down one 60yr old man’s shack

Zille Raine Heights Residents Committee Press Statement
Friday 6th July 2007
3pm

GRASSY PARK, CAPE TOWN – Ten vans of city police are currently breaking up a tiny unfinished shack belonging to Mr David Tarentaal (60 years old).

Mr Tarentaal is the father of the Zille Raine Heights Residents Committee Co-ordinator, Lorraine Heunis.

He has been living on the same piece of land, in a shack, for the past 57 years! He was three years old when his parents moved onto the piece of land. Over the past 57 years, five generations of people have come to live in the same small shack.

Mr Tarentaal’s daughter, Zille Raine Heights Residents Committee Co-ordinator, Lorraine Heunis lives in the sme shack with her children and her grandchildren. Another child and her children also live there. There are more than 12 people living in this tiny shack.

Because of this overcrowded and unacceptable situation, the family decided to erect a tiny room behind the shack where Mr Tarentaal could like in privacy. They did this as a last resort after Mr Tarentaal spent 30 years on the housing waiting list to no avail. Two years ago, Mr Tarentaal was told by council that he would be getting a house but this never materialised.

Shortly after the family began erecting the tiny room, ten vans of city police arrived and started breaking up the shack. They produced no documentation at all and have been insolent and aggressive in their approach.

If you phone the family now, you will hear the noise of the tiny shack being broken up in the background, and the sounds of the poor residents trying to get the police not to damage the building material.

…/ends

Call Lorraine Heunis on 083 4319794