Macassar Village Secured an Urgent Interdict Against the City of Cape Town Last Night on the 30th May 2009

Abahlali baseMjondolo of the Western Cape
Urgent Press Release

Last Night We Secured an Urgent Interdict Against the City of Cape Town that Prevents them from Continuing with their Criminal Harassment of the Macassar Village Ocupation

We have secured an urgent interdict against the City of Cape Town. The interdict prevents them from demolishing any shack or structure at the Macassar Village Occupation without an order of the court (and the due process that obtaining such an order requires). It also compels them to return to us all the building materials that they have stolen.

This is an important victory against state criminality in Cape Town. Municipalities across the country regularly engage in criminal behaviour towards the poor because they are confident that we will not be able to secure legal support. But ten days after we first occupied the land we were able, with church support, to secure a lawyer and to succeed in forcing the City of Cape Town to engage with us in terms of the law. The City wanted to resolved this crisis with violence. We have now been given an opportunity to resolve this crisis politically.

For more information please contact Mzonke Poni at 073 256 62036