Shack dwellers in Cape Town
Country: South Africa | Partner: Abahlali baseMjondolo Western Cape
Aims
- To campaign against the repressive policies of the Western Cape provincial government towards shack dwellers
- To lobby for the legal rights of shack dwellers, particularly their right to live in cities near work opportunities, schools and vital community-based institutions
- To oppose evictions and the razing of shacks, which have left thousands homeless
- To campaign for all shack dwellers to have secure tenure and decent access to essential services such as clean water, electricity, sanitation, health care and education
Successes
- AbM-WC has successfully lobbied for upgrades to shack settlements, including improved toilets and sanitation
- In just two years since being founded, AbM-WC has extended its reach to 15 communities and set up a head office to coordinate its work
- AbM-WC has effectively mobilised communities and brought them together in the struggle for their rights
The facts
- A total of 30% of Cape Town residents live in informal settlements
- Up to 70% of all households in shack settlements in Cape Town do not have access to basic sanitation
- A legacy of apartheid town planning, shack settlements are on the outskirts of the city, removed from work and economic opportunities
Abahlali baseMjondolo Western Cape (AbM-WC) was established in July 2008 to fight for the rights of shack dwellers in the Cape Town. AbM-WC leads the struggle for access to decent housing and basic services, including water, electricity and sanitation in 15 of the most deprived communities in Cape Town.
Although it shares a name with our partner Abahlali baseMjondolo KwaZulu Natal, AbM-WC was originally an affiliate of the Anti-Eviction Campaign, another War on Want partner. It became an independent organisation with the specific aim of addressing the rights of shack dwellers in the city.
Like all shack dwellers across South Africa, those of the Western Cape suffer from a lack of clean water, sanitation, electricity, adequate healthcare and access to education. What makes their situation particularly acute and thus the work of AbM-WC so pressing is that the price of land in Cape Town is 10 times higher than in Johannesburg, making tenure impossible for most and forcing even more people to live in shack settlements.
Even though the government has failed to fulfil its constitution obligation to provide housing for everyone, Western Cape authorities have cracked down on the construction of shacks in informal settlements. Moreover, the homes the government has built are inadequate, lack basic services and are far removed from cities and work opportunies. AbM-WC believes that a better solution to the housing problems could be reached if the local government consulted with the local communities. However, efforts led by AbM-WC to resist repressive government housing measures like forced displacement have been met with arrest and even violence.
AbM-WC's main objective is to campaign against the top-down policies of local government which discriminate against shack dwellers. To improve settlement conditions, AbM-WC calls for increased security of tenure for shack dwellers as well as government provision of flush toilets, proper sanitation and affordable water and electricity. Within the communities the AbM-WC runs workshops to teach residents about their rights, runs crèches and organises marches to highlight the grievances of shack dwellers to local authorities.
AbM-WC forms part of a wider network of radical grassroots organisations called the Poor People's Alliance which includes fellow War on Want partners the Anti-Eviction Campaign, Sikhula Sonke, the Landless People's Movement and Abahlali baseMjondolo KwaZulu-Natal. This movement seeks to improve the living conditions of the landless and shack dwellers all over South Africa, developing strategies drawn from shared experiences to achieve self-organised social transformation. War on Want proudly supports the work of this alliance and its members.
For more information please see www.khayelitshastruggles.com
