Daily News: War over Warwick rages on

War over Warwick rages on
Traders get third court order to open market

June 16, 2009 Edition 1

Lyse Comins

The war of Warwick Junction rages through Youth Day after traders obtained a third court order against eThekwini authorities.

The Early Morning Market traders secured another Durban High Court order yesterday forcing the municipality to open the market to legal traders tomorrow.

This came in the wake of another violent clash with Metro Police and a day of lost trade yesterday.

The Early Morning Market Traders’ Association chairman, Harry Ramlall, said his attorney was scheduled to meet the city’s legal counsel in court again today to clarify the dispute over legal and illegal traders in the market.

Dozens of traders waited all day yesterday outside the market, hoping it would be opened. Police fired rubber bullets, injuring four traders. Five traders were arrested on charges of alleged public violence.

“The city has given us the assurance that the market will be open. The order has been granted for the third time. The market will definitely be open on Wednesday morning,” said Ramlall.

“I will be at court at 9am (today) verifying the so-called illegal traders because they need to be legalised.

“It’s only fair if they have been there for a long time that they should be legal because the council has accepted rental from them.”

However, deputy mayor Logie Naidoo earlier said traders collectively owed the municipality hundreds of thousands of rands in rental arrears and many traders were illegal tenants.

Traders have opposed the demolition of the market to make way for a R400 million shopping mall.

Several “barrow boys”, who ferry fresh produce around the junction, told the Daily News they were hungry and worried about feeding their families. They worked for themselves, they said, and had lost their daily income of R100 to R200 a day since Friday.

Minority Front leader Amichand Rajbansi, who visited Warwick Junction yesterday, said he would call for a special motion to have the issue “re-debated” by the council. He said he would take the fight to the Human Rights Commission and the Equality Court.

“We were misled (by the council) that this (mall) would be developed over the railway line. Mike Sutcliffe calls this an apartheid structure and says he is concerned about the democratic majority. What does he mean by this?

“The saviour of our province is going to be SMMEs and the informal sector. We are going to take this issue very seriously. It is very strange that the leaders of this province are keeping silent,” Rajbansi said.

SAPS Captain Khepu Ndlovu said two women were injured yesterday when Metro Police fired rubber bullets at protesting traders, and two women were injured in falls. They were taken to hospital by ambulance.

Three men and two women were arrested and charged with public violence. Metro Police Superintendent Wiseman Mchunu said police had used “minimal force” to control the crowd.

eThekwini Municipality business support unit manager Philip Sithole said legal traders had been allowed access to the market but chose to stand in solidarity with the illegal traders.

SPCA chief inspector Dougie Du Plessis said traders had alerted him to the plight of 200 caged chickens inside the building. Eight chickens had died, but this was not from a lack of food and water.

Du Plessis said market managers had allowed some traders entry to tend their chickens, but not all the owners were present.

“They can’t stay cooped up here in small cages forever. Normally, they are sold within two days.

“We have been feeding and watering the birds at our own cost.

“Fruit and vegetables are going rotten but the municipality won’t allow traders in because if they do they will have another sit-in.

“It’s very sad because there are hungry people out there,” Du Plessis said.