NORMAN MCFARLANE, WARD 84 COUNCILLOR
Illegal land occupations continue to take place in many locations in the City of Cape Town. The City’s public parks and roads are particularly vulnerable to unlawful occupation, in that many of them are unfenced and maintained in a natural state.
De Beers Park in Main Road, Somerset West is one such location. Until Wednesday May 15, there were over 25 two- man tents erected there, most of which bear the Barclays emblem and would appear to have been sponsored at some stage for some other purpose.
Apparently, many such tents, used at the Cape Epic overnight locations, are or were donated to disaster relief institutions once the event is over.
It is evident that many of these tents have found their way into the hands of persons who prefer to set up accommodation in our public places, as opposed to any safe space or shelter accommodation that is available, often via third parties to whom the tents are donated or who work with homeless people.
The occupation of our public places on a permanent basis, by any person, not only removes every other person’s right to use or access that park for recreational purposes, but also creates massive problems for the City in terms of hygiene, fire risk, and very real social degradation of the persons in question.
The extensive budget that the City has allocated to social interventions in our safe spaces and shelters to enable reintegration into society is all but nullified when tents are provided to persons for the occupation of public space, no matter how well intentioned.
For all these reasons, the City objects to any such action and will not hesitate to charge any person found to be donating tents to persons who are intent on the unlawful erection thereof in a public park without the City’s consent.
In this most recent case, the City intends to pursue the entity that donated these tents to illegal occupants at De Beers Park, and is following up on the registration number of the bakkie which dropped off the tents, in order to do so.
Such behaviour amounts to little other than incitement to illegally occupy City-owned land and cannot go unnoticed.
In the entire City’s eviction applications under the Prevention of Illegal Evictions (PIE) Act, each occupant is engaged by both City’s Law Enforcement and City’s Social Development Department, and offers of alternative safe space accommodation are made. The offers include rehabilitation, food and social assistance, but many of the affected occupants refuse to accept these offers of assistance for varying reasons.
Whilst there is no law which states one must accept such offer of assistance, the right to an eviction is dependent on the offer being made, is fair and reasonable. Where tents have been offered to such occupants, this increases the likelihood of them not accepting any offer of assistance and renders the problem of homelessness more entrenched.
Whilst the City continues to strive for reintegration of our homeless population via social intervention and support, we cannot agree to the delivery of tents to facilitate illegal occupation of our public places and trust we can rely on the assistance of the residents of Cape Town in this regard.