Service Delivery Protests (South Africa)
South Africa has been dubbed "the protest capital of the world", with one of the highest rates of public protests in the world. It is often argued that the rate of protests has been escalating since 2004, but Steven Friedman argues that the current wave of protests stretches back to the 1970s. The rate of protests "rose dramatically in the first eight months of 2012", and it was reported that there 540 protests in the province of Gauteng between 1 April and 10 May 2013. In February 2014 it was reported that there had been "nearly 3,000 protest actions in the last 90 days – more than 30 a day– involving more than a million people". Since 2008, more than 2 million people have taken to the streets in protest every year. Njabulo Ndebele argued, "Widespread 'service delivery protests' may soon take on an organisational character that will start off as discrete formations and then coalesce into a full-blown movement". There has been considerable repression of popular protests. [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini. It also completely enclaves the country Lesotho. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World, and the second-most populous country located entirely south of the equator, after Tanzania. South Africa is a biodiversity hotspot, with unique biomes, plant and animal life. With over 60 million people, the country is the world's 24th-most populous nation and covers an area of . South Africa has three capital cities, with the executive, judicial and legislative branches of government based in Pretoria, Bloemfontein, and Cape Town respectively. The largest city is Johannesburg. About 80% of the population are Black South Afri ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Macassar Village
The squatter's movement Abahlali baseMjondolo occupied a piece of vacant state owned land in Macassar Village, near Somerset West outside of Cape Town on 18 May 2009. The occupation was later destroyed by the city's anti-land invasion unit. Background Before occupying the land Abahlali baseMjondolo organised an open and public 'cleaning campaign' on the land during which the land was cleared. On the day of the occupation four people, including prominent academic Martin Legassick were arrested. The arrests, which were accompanied by shooting with rubbfollowed two attempts by the occupiers to barricade the N2 in protest at the demolition of their shacks by the police. The Cape Times quoted Clarissa Benjamin, a 47-year-old mother of three as saying "We have no place to stay. The government has millions to spend on building stadiums for 2010, but I have been waiting for a house for the past 20 years.". Bush Radio reported that the local councillor had agreed, on 20 May, to hand th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mike Sutcliffe
Michael Sutcliffe is the former municipal managerA look back at Sutcliffe’s tenure by Nondumiso Mbuyazi, ''Daily News'', 29 December 2011 of the (population 4 million), which includes the city of , . He has been widely reported to be a controversial figure amongst Durbanites and has been the target of popular protest in the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Abahlali BaseMjondolo
Abahlali baseMjondolo (AbM, , in English: "the residents of the shacks") is a socialist shack dwellers' movement in South Africa which organises land occupations, builds communesThe gospel according to Abahlali baseMjondolo: Land occupiers' group starts 'socialist' commune in eThekwini Des Erasmus, ''Daily Maverick'', 18 April 2021 and campaigns against evictions and xenophobia and for public housing.Abahlali baseMjondolo: Living Politics Socio-Econo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Macassar Village Land Occupation
The squatter's movement Abahlali baseMjondolo occupied a piece of vacant state owned land in Macassar Village, near Somerset West outside of Cape Town on 18 May 2009. The occupation was later destroyed by the city's anti-land invasion unit. Background Before occupying the land Abahlali baseMjondolo organised an open and public 'cleaning campaign' on the land during which the land was cleared. On the day of the occupation four people, including prominent academic Martin Legassick were arrested. The arrests, which were accompanied by shooting with rubbfollowed two attempts by the occupiers to barricade the N2 in protest at the demolition of their shacks by the police. The Cape Times quoted Clarissa Benjamin, a 47-year-old mother of three as saying "We have no place to stay. The government has millions to spend on building stadiums for 2010, but I have been waiting for a house for the past 20 years.". Bush Radio reported that the local councillor had agreed, on 20 May, to hand th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Balfour, Eastern Cape
Balfour is a town in Raymond Mhlaba Municipality, Amathole District Municipality, in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The village, which lies at the foot of the Katberg, was established as a mission station of the Glasgow Missionary Society in 1828 by John Ross and McDiarmid McDiarmid, also MacDiarmid, is an Irish surname originating from a high king of Ireland circa 657 AD, popular in Scotland. People Notable people with this surname include: McDiarmid * Archie McDiarmid (1881–1957), Scottish-born Canadian tra ..., and named after Robert Balfour, first Secretary of the Society. Throughout the nine Frontier Wars, the town experienced some heavy fighting. Today, tobacco, citrus, wool and beef farming are practised in the area. References Populated places in the Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality {{EasternCape-geo-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Symphony Way
Symphony Way Informal Settlement was a small community of pavement dwellers (shack dwellers who live on the pavement) that lived on Symphony Way, a main road in Delft, South Africa, from February 2008 until late 2009. They were a group of families that were evicted in February 2008 from the N2 Gateway Houses. History of the community In December 2007, Frank Martin, a Democratic Alliance Councillor and City of Cape Town mayoral committee member, issued letters to an estimated 300 families in Delft, which granted them permission to move into the houses, and stated that he would accept full responsibility for the consequences. Backyard-dwellers then occupied over 1,500 houses in the N2 Gateway. In February, over 1,500 families were evicted from the N2 Gateway houses. This was a violent eviction which included the use of rubber bullets. Over 20 people were injured including many women and children. Pictures and videos have circulated taking account of the violence including the sho ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Marikana Miner Strike
The Marikana massacre was the killing of thirty-four miners by the South African Police Service (SAPS) on 16 August 2012 during a six-week wildcat strike at the Lonmin platinum mine at Marikana near Rustenburg in South Africa's North West province. The massacre constituted the most lethal use of force by South African security forces against civilians since the Soweto uprising in 1976 and has been compared to the 1960 Sharpeville massacre. The massacre occurred on the seventh day of an illegal wildcat strike at the mine: although the initial strikers were primarily rock drill operators belonging to the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), the strike action was launched without NUM endorsement. The strikers sought a sizeable wage increase, to R12,500 monthly, to be negotiated outside the existing collective wage agreement. Early reports, later denied, suggested that they had been encouraged in this demand by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Grahamstown
Makhanda, also known as Grahamstown, is a town of about 140,000 people in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated about northeast of Port Elizabeth and southwest of East London, Eastern Cape, East London. Makhanda is the largest town in the Makana Local Municipality, and the seat of the municipal council. It also hosts Rhodes University, the Eastern Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa, High Court, the South African Library for the Blind (SALB), Diocese of Grahamstown, a diocese of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, and 6 South African Infantry Battalion. Furthermore, located approximately 3 km south-east of the town lies the world renowned Waterloo Farm lagerstätte, Waterloo Farm, the only estuarine fossil site in the world from 360 million years ago with exceptional soft-tissue preservation. The town's name-change from Grahamstown to Makhanda was officially gazetted on 29 June 2018. The town was officially renamed to Makhanda in memory ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ermelo, Mpumalanga
Ermelo () is the educational, industrial and commercial town of the 7,750 km2 Gert Sibande District Municipality in Mpumalanga province, Republic of South Africa. It is both a mixed agriculture and mining region. It is located 210 km east of Johannesburg. History Some of the earliest inhabitants of the area were the Leghoya people. Not much is known about them, but ruins of their settlements dating back to c.1400 can be found in the area. During the mid-1800s, the area prior to the formation as a village, was an ''outspan'' area for resting teams of draw animals transporting goods across the region mainly due to the water of the small lakes dotting the area. Modern Ermelo was founded by Dutch Reformed Church Reverend Frans Lion Cachet (1835–1899). He would minister to the many farms in the area. A congregation was started by Cachet in 1870, and was recognised by the 5th annual general meeting of the church in April 1872. The town was formed on the farm ''Nooitgedacht'' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Masiphumelele
Masiphumelele is a township on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, situated between Kommetjie, Capri Village and Noordhoek. Initially known as Site 5, the township was renamed Masiphumelele by its residents, which is a Xhosa word meaning "let us succeed". About 400-500 people first settled in the area in the 1980s. During apartheid residents were continually removed to the suburb of Khayelitsha, over 30 km away, but the numbers began to grow as apartheid began to unravel from 1990. In 1990, about 8000 residents lived in the area, mostly in shacks, but by 2005, over 26000 people lived there, many in brick homes. In 2010, the population was estimated at 38000. Many are from the old Ciskei bantustan in the Eastern Cape. Amenities are scarce, with an overcrowded school, no police station, and an understaffed day clinic, while it's estimated that 30-40% of the community are infected with HIV and/or TB. SHAWCO, the University of Cape Town Student's Health And Welfare Centres ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |