Police confront protesters from Lower Crossroads earlier today. Photo by Nombulelo Damba.
29 May 2015
Violence has erupted between residents of Lower Crossroads and the Marikana settlement in Philippi East. Today police shot rubber bullets and stun grenades at a group of protesters from Lower Crossroads apparently to prevent them attacking Marikana.
The Lower Crossroads residents were marching toward the Marikana settlement in Philippi East. They accuse the Marikana residents of trying to burn down two schools in Lower Crossroads. The two neighbourhoods are divided by a road: Symphony Way.
They also alleged that a house of a woman in Lower Crossroads was set alight. The owner of the house identified herself as Mabhayi. She said her house was burnt because she told the Marikana residents to stop burning tyres next to her house. An eye witness said, “They first stoned the house on Wednesday. Then today they threw a petrol bomb after she stopped them from burning tyres next to her house.”
An ANC councillor’s house was burnt down yesterday as well.
The Lower Crossroads residents fought back today and burnt one of the shacks in Marikana suspected of belonging to leading protesters.
Marikana residents have been protesting for several days demanding service delivery to the land that they are living on. Many of the Marikana residents, especially those who took part in the original occupation of the private land upon which Marikana sits, used to be backyard dwellers in Lower Crossroads.
“These people [the Marikana residents] have vowed to burn down all our houses and we will fight them back,” a Lower Crossroads community leader told the police while residents were marching. “Where were you this morning when this house was torched? Again where were you when they destroyed our councillor’s house? We want to fight them. We are tired of their nonsense,” said the man.
Another Lower Crossroads community leader, Mbaliswano Mzondi, told the police that all they wanted is to have a meeting with the leaders of Marikana and find a solution. “What they doing had nothing to do with service delivery. Burning our houses won’t solve a problem. That is why we want to tell them to stop,” he said.
The situation remained on edge this afternoon. In both areas residents have called meetings. Some Marikana residents, in fear of retaliation, have removed their belongings from their homes.
Police confirmed that they took action today. Spokesperson for SAPS, Lieutenant Colonel Andrè Traut said they were continuing to monitor the situation, which he described as tense.