Court rules that allocation of police in Western Cape is discriminatory

Victory for Social Justice Coalition may result in poorer areas getting more officers

Photo of banner in front of the Cape High Court

Activists from the Social Justice Coalition demonstrated outside the Equality Court in Cape Town last year where they brought an application to change the way police resources are allocated. Photo: Ashraf Hendricks

By Thembela Ntongana and GroundUp Staff

14 December 2018

Judge MJ Dolamo of the Cape High Court (sitting as the Equality Court) has declared that the allocation of police resources in the Western Cape unfairly discriminates on the basis of race and poverty. The ruling came on Friday morning, and is a victory for the Khayelitsha-based social movement Social Justice Coalition (SJC).

The case, brought by the SJC, Equal Education and the Nyanga Community Policing Forum, was heard from November 2017 through to February 2018. The remedy and costs will be decided at a later date.

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