I just read an article suggesting that South Africa’s homeless will be moved out of the cities and into the townships to keep the streets cleaner during the World Cup. It seems that the inconvenience of having people sleeping on the streets has become too much to bear and instead they should be shipped out to keep SA pretty for the guests. The article quotes a “Johannesburg local government spokesperson” who says that “You have to clean the house before you have guests”. The fact that they didn’t give his name makes me wonder if it’s a real quote, but nonetheless it’s important to consider this idea.
When I was a student at Rhodes we were always amazed at how a similar thing happened during orientation week and graduation weekend. Suddenly the street children and homeless people who we had come to know from the area were whisked away to god knows where for the period when all the families and parents were around. We used to remark on this every year, but never really made an effort to find out where they went.
Now I am intrigued. Where did they all go and more importantly, who took them there? Is this something that happens in many of South Africa’s cities when they are trying to look “presentable”. I’d be interested to hear more feedback from the government on this.
I don’t think it’s acceptable to hide a country’s poverty simple for reasons of posterity or aesthetics. People who are coming here know that we have problems (which is probably why they’ve kitted themselves out with the latest in handbag hooks and fanny pouches) and I doubt they’re going to think, “shew, but South Africa is so clean“, because there are no homeless people around. So what would the justification be?
And what about the people who already live in those settlements where they’re being relocated to? Do they not also deserve some say in the matter given that many of them are already sharing scarce resources just to get through the day? It sounds old-regimish and scary to think that the people most starved of their rights in SA could be kicked to the curb in such a blase and blatant fashion. It is heartless to say the least. This is extremely worrying and I hope that the article was more sensationalist than factual.
Happens here in Durban as well, Jen, whenever there is a big event in town.
Suddenly policing kicks in, street kids are rounded up and taken to a farm in the rural areas for a free food holiday. They are not kept against their will and too much tasteless porridge and the absence of glue sends them all back to a life on the streets of Durban. This traveling takes a bit of time though and they usually only reappear after the event.
I got this from a twelve year old part-time carguard whom I befriended when I lived on the Esplanade
China did the same in Beijng Olympics 2008. In Shanghai , for Expo 2010, the government was busy with forced removals of people before we left for New Zealand, NOT just beggars and roadside tinkers plying their trade out of a small cart. People were being removed from their HOMES and their housing was destroyed as part of the upgrade of Shanghai to showcase a “new” Shanghai to the world. There were reports of suicide, a story which I am surprised the English newspapers in Shanghai even carried in a country with such a heavy censorship. This was my article on it http://www.thoughtleader.co.za/rodmackenzie/2009/12/24/memories-of-apartheid-forced-removals-here-in-china/
Learn from the communist Chinese what they did for the Beijing Olympics. And that from a nation whose nominal core philosophy is egalitarian socialism.
Interesting. So let’s look at all the angles.
- These homeless people (I prefer vagrants) are living on mostly public land, ocassionally trespassing on private property, which is paid for with ratepayers money and meant to be shared by those who contribute.
- The homeless have increased dramatically, we all know this, as has the squatters. (Vagrants who have annexed public or private property without paying).
- The organisations that try to help these people have limited success, since it is much easier to live on the street when vagrancy is legal and responsibility to society zero, than to obey the few rules necessary to turn help centres into a beneficial uplifting home.
- These people are encroaching on the rights of others to have a healthy environment.
- Should those who do not contribute to societhy have more rights than those who do?
- Everyone needs a helping hand at some stage but they must actually want to be helped and make some effort themselves.
- Picture everyone giving up a responsible life and living on the street. It would be their right, wouldn’t it? Not a pretty picture.
It is time that “human rights” be given a serious second look. Our species are not making great strides in the survival game, as it is.
Why is a dirty house OK for us South Africans? We should come first as we all want to live in a clean house. Perhaps we will go back to trashing everything once the guests have gone??
Here’s a good documentary on the effects of forced relocation in Cape Town: http://antieviction.org.za/2010/02/06/tin-town-a-short-documentary-on-the-symphony-way-anti-eviction-campaign/
It reminds me of how China forbade mentally ill people to even appear in public during the Beijing Olympics. Orwellian mess.
Maybe they are just following the Angola example. Here is a quote in today’s Africa Files from Luis Samacumbi the Director of Development, of the Congregational church, who was part of an offical church leaders’ delegation to Lubango in southern Angola: “3,000 people had been evicted from their homes and forcibly relocated to Chavola camp just 3 weeks before by the municipal authorities and police of Lubango. The churchmen found people living in desperate conditions in the camp. Some 700 tents had been issued; some had salvaged iron sheets. No compensation has been received; they believe none is planned. It is feared that this national government program of housing demolition and population relocation which began last year in Luanda is planned to continue in Bengeula, Luanda and in other cities. The purpose is to build housing for commercial and well-to-do people, a profitable enterprise in a booming economy.”
The BIG lesson I have learned from African independence is that African governments do not give a damn for their poor; which is why both Zambians and Zimbabweans have said to me that they should have persisted with the old Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.
I remember when Zimbabwe was to host the Non -Aligned Summit, some sort of coming out party in the 1980s that “doyen” of ubuntu also did a clean up. His and his acolytes extended it to the natural environment in the townships, grassy and bushy areas were graded and denuded of vegetation and come to think of it these began to look like roads but alas when the rains came months after the last summit journalist and visitor had left the denuded spaces became huge galleys which still adorn the landscape.
The issue of vagrants is one that has to be dealt with decisively as in finding a lasting solution to mitigate the prevalence of this blight and eyesore on society. There must be a balance between being humane and ensuring that law and order prevail. Some of those homeless people are foreign nationals to whom the government must be cruel to be kind by deporting them back to their countries of origin. There must also be a concerted program of development and investment incentives that should stem the flow to the major cities.
but this happens everywhere. the “urban cleansing” that they did in atlanta before the olympics in 1996 is stuff of legend. why would south africa be particularly different?
one only hopes that there aren’t any ripoffs of candelâria here in south africa in the next few weeks. it’s almost certain that they will recur in brazil before the world cup and the olympics.
but, ja, cleaning out the homeless is part and parcel with welcoming large numbers of international visitors for major events.
To be quite frank, and speaking as an observer, I sometimes wonder if this World Cup will really benefit South Africa at all and by South Africa, I refer to the ordinary man on the street. And its articles like this that confirm my fears. Where did those people go to during orientaation week, you are so right, now that I come to think of it, Grahamstown was much ‘emptier’ in record time.
The closer we get to the World Cup, the more glaringly obvious it becomes that South Africa will be screwed over by FIFA eg the whole Kulula advert saga and the fact that informal traders cant sell their wares at venues. Sometimes I really wonder….
An interestig subject. Just yesterday we had 5 american students here that were studying “gentrification” in the Woodstock ( Cape Town ) area. I do have written evidence that people are forcibly removed by the CID on a regular basis, a fact that is even admitted by the authority. Will somebody pls. stand up a lay criminal charges for abduction ? The case can surely be won. Pls. get in touch with chair@village.woodstock.za.org
Pretty awful stuff. But not new. Rudy Giuliani, the mayor famous for ‘cleaning up New York’ in the 90s basically rounded up homeless people, put them on buses, drove them out of town and dumped them somewhere (hopefully) too far for them to make their way back from.
Let them have everyone removed from the all the townships except Soweto including their illgotten grandparents that they now regard as homeless and housed them in squatter camps around the country, with the promise that they will one day build match box houses.
Perhaps the issue of forcible removal of legal, rate and tax paying citizens for should not be confused with the removal of parasitical bums who sponge off the former by playing on their emotions?
Volunteers beware!!
When they hosted the environmental summit in Jo’burg a few years ago the volunteers were given no fare money, no free meals and rest facilities. They were basically exploited, unlike the Sydney Olympics where they were treated as real ambassadors and behaved impeccably and took initiatives to make sure everyone had a great time.
Just what are the volunteer conditions for this world cup?
Unfortunate, but not unique to SA. Atlanta did the same thing for the 1996 Olympics, as did China in 2008. I suspect other countries have as well. So don’t feel singled out; we’re all dysfunctional that way.
What doesn’t make sense to me is what they think it accomplishes. Are tourists really going to think “Wow! Atlanta/ Cape Town/ etc has NO homeless people! What a thriving, vibrant country! I think I shall move here!” We’re all used to homeless people; it seems stranger when they’re not around than when they are.
Whilst adults continue to produce off-spring which they, the adults concerned, have absolutely no capability of launching into successful adulthoods we will have homeless people.
Apparently Sydney did it for their Olympics.
It sounds like the Constitutional Court would enjoy such a “human rights” case! You cannot just move people about temporarily (or otherwise) without reasonable justification. And “to not been seen by foreigners” is not reasonable justification.
Another spin on this would be that, perhaps if the world did see our disparities of wealth, they would be more generous in foreign aid & development assistance. And if the country looks “too clean”, they’ll start thinking South Africa is “crying wolf” with its development, social & economic problems.
Do not make the mistake of confusing Squatters with the homeless.Most squatter camps ( Informal settlements) are full of opportunists who have homes somewhere else.At Easter and Xmas these so-called homeless people all go HOME.
Jennifer, when you write your book, perhaps you can investigate “where do flies go in winter?” maybe they follow the homeless – or “trash” as Pres Mugabe called them.
Taking of Mr Mugabe and his cronies, wasn’t 1994 meant to be the end of forced removals? “Plus ça change..”
@X Cepting: Yeah, because if the unemployed and homeless aren’t paying their rates and taxes then they’re not worth bothering with, right? I mean, let’s not consider why they might be unable to….
@Rory Short: Ermm…That’s an entirely myopic view of the situation; there are fundamental systemic problems that prevent a large number of people from growing up ‘successfully’ (I’d love to know what you mean by this) and that render an equally large number of people homeless, due to no fault of their own.
I’m sure in your mind it’s a simple matter of ‘teh poor’ simply striving harder; that success in this matter is usually fuel for a Disney story should serve to indicate how rarely this (migration between classes) actually happens. I guess 99.99% of poor people just couldn’t be bothered to ‘lift themselves out of their current situation’, eh?
In my first year at Rhodes I did a journ internship at the Daily Mail, and my first story was on this topic – the ‘cleansing’ of Durban, especially the beachfront area, over the Christmas holiday period when all the tourists invade the area.
I think this was more of a right of passage writing this story than any actual journalistic piece of writing. We found squat. Everyone we spoke to said it happened – ‘just look around you’ – yet no one, not one person, had any facts. I won’t say it doesn’t happen, but how can this story not have one person knowing the facts? It’s all a little dubious to me.
@Aragorn23 – Please do not emotionalise the whole issue, it does not help to sort out the problem of vagrancy. Would you agree that people who are barely making ends meet themself working, paying bonds, rates and taxes should not really watch what they’ve worked damned hard for be destroyed by people who do not contribute anything but foul language, despicable unsocial behaviour and the risk of spreading disease?
The homeless, and everyone else for that matter, needs cheaper, quality education, job opportunities and confidence rebuilding, which I do spend my time and money on. I support numerous trolley scrap collectors by sorting my rubbish for easy, clean pickup by them. They don’t earn much but it is a start and believe me, by the mutual respect that exist in that relationship, I know I am doing the right thing. I am always fighting for micro businessmen and support them wherever I find them, as long as they abide by the law.
What the homeless does not need is to have their dignity demolished by becoming perpetual charity takers. The Constitution is big on dignity and respect. Ever read it and thought what it really means? Ever been on the receiving end of charity?
There are organisation that help these people to find themself again, like the numerous charity-funded shelters. The destitute must want help first and YOU and other well meaning people are taking their will to help themself away from them by supporting them on the street.
cont’d: Anti-social behaviour robs those of us who do work hard to get along and make it work of our right to that society. Soon enough, if something is not done about the situation, enough will be enough and people will move to where they can have that society. Where will you find the tax money then to support these people? Who will pay the rates to maintain the neighbourhood, now no longer pleasant to live in?
@X Cepting: To clarify, I think the problem is a lot more fundamental than whether or not we can integrate the poor into our society by allowing them to make token contributions; rather, I think it is society itself that creates the conditions of poverty and that we must thus start developing entirely different approaches if we are interested in a society that fosters positive social values of solidarity, egalitarianism, mutual aid, etc., as opposed to selfishness, materialism, hyper-individualism and rampant, mindless greed.
More simply put, the best thing you can do for ‘the poor’ is to challenge capitalism and statism, which are the root cause of poverty in the first place.
“The assumption that what currently exists must necessarily exist is the acid that corrodes all visionary thinking.” – Murray Bookchin
Vagrants and beggars are themselves exploited. I don’t know if it still happens, but I have seen a bakkie with six or seven kids in it pull into the parking underneath Checkers in Umhlanga. The kids take off their presentable clothes and dress themselves in rags.
They then wander about the centre of town and hang around at robots begging. I presume like car guards, they pay the bakkie driver a fee for delivery to and from their pitch. There are even tales of women renting out their kids to beggars, and most horribly, disfiguring their children to increase the sympathy take.
@Panchetta: I spent some time as a part-timer with the Umhlanga Protection Services in the 90′s before they were assimilated into the Durban Metro cops.
The Umhlanga Town Council didn’t want the Xmas holidaymakers pestered and quietly issued an informal instruction to the head of the UPS each year.
At the beginning of December we would round up all the street kids, vagrants, beggars, dronkies, people we knew were pickpockets and petty criminals. They were put in police transport waggons, driven up to near Pongola, almost into Swaziland and left there. We estimated that they would take at least a month to walk back, and hopefully would get stuck in Richards Bay or Ballito on the way.
It’s nothing new, and it happens in all towns.
@Aragorn23 – Better than your first argument.
Yes, society is not perfect, far from it. Yes, all of us created it.
No, capitalism cannot be blamed, individual actions can (No-one says you have to buy from the big guy). Fighting capitalism won’t work. To promote a (new) system that will work instead might, IF it works.
Egalitarian? Sure, if we can agree on the meaning of the word first (there are two totally different definitions: equal opportunity and equal economic status). It is human nature to compete and actually not in the interest of the species not to do so. I cannot agree with a lazy person sharing the fruits of my hard work. I would be willing to give him a helping hand to help himself, on the condition he does the same for another. Don’t blame successful people for the lack of success of another, it just gives the unsuccessful another excuse to continue.
Exploitation happens all the time, yes, and can only be fought by educating the exploited against it. “Don’t accept that gift, it always has a price tag”.
Fight hyper-individualism? Sorry pal, I actively promote it. There is so little of it left, all I see around me are advertising clones with no individuality.
Greed – Agreed. It is a disease brought on by fear of lack.
Statism – Meaning a stagnant status quo? Afraid it will stay that way until someone beat them and become top dog.
Cities create poverty and technological innovation.
Cont’d – It is a matter of choosing between your affordable laptop made in a sweat shop or the sweat shop slave. Handing out charity is counter-productive. Newton’s third law proves my point. Every aditional charity organisation will create additional charity takers.
Fight for equal education, that is where it all starts… and stays.
@X Cepting: To clarify, I meant this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarchism
@Aragorn23 – Oh dear, what are you smoking?
To counter the anarchy dream and the chaos it creates will take hi-jacking this blog even more than we already have. But, perhaps write a blog on anarchy as a viable system to replace capitalism and I will engage. You can have both systems at the same time, by the way, simply remove the law, we are half way there already in SA…