Housing
“My only thought was: I don’t want to die”
Nolufefe Mhlangeni lost her mother and her two-year-old daughter in a fire in Masiphumelele in 2013. On Sunday, she lost her home.
Thembela Ntongana
News | 30 November 2015
Who is responsible for Blikkiesdorp?
Who is responsible for Blikkiesdorp? This question has been coming up in response to work in the community by the Open Democracy Advice Centre.
Alison Tilley
Opinion | 30 November 2015
One thousand homes destroyed in Masiphumelele fire
Distraught residents wander amongst the ash, corrugated iron, rubble and smoke of Section D in Masiphumelele, a township in Cape Town's south peninsula. In the last few hours, thousands have lost their homes and possessions. Two fire engines stand at the edge of the burnt areas.
GroundUp Staff
Brief | 29 November 2015
Twitter war between activists and City over Wolwerivier
A spat erupted on Twitter this week when Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU) director Zackie Achmat accused City of Cape Town’s Benedicta van Minnen of being ‘a liar’ and ‘one who holds black people in contempt’.
Barbara Maregele
News | 27 November 2015
Residents in Khayelitsha take on Big Five
Tensions are high in Isiqalo informal settlement after violent clashes between residents and former community leaders who have refused to step down.
Siyavuya Khaya
News | 25 November 2015
Audit finds serious problems at Wolwerivier. But will City listen?
Overcrowding, high unemployment rates and fire safety are just some of the concerns raised by a social audit of Wolwerivier, a low-cost housing project north of Cape Town.
Barbara Maregele
News | 24 November 2015
We’re like cockroaches to the City, say Johannesburg residents
The corridors are long and institution-like, lined by doors. Light peeks in through the staircase windows, but the corridors are dark, despite it being 10AM on a bright Johannesburg day.
Sarita Pillay
Feature | 20 November 2015
Living in cardboard shacks … inside a hostel
“The condition that these people live in is uncalled for,” says Ward 52 Councillor Mayenzeke Sopaqa. He is describing a derelict area in Section 18, Langa, known as Emaholweni, established 45 years ago in what has become a no-man’s-land, all but abandoned by the authorities.
Photos by Masixole Feni and Liza Kettil.Text by Thembela Ntongana
News | 19 November 2015
Imizamo Yethu residents rebuild after fire
Imizamo Yethu residents who fell victim to a fire that razed numerous shacks and left families homeless a week ago are busy rebuilding their homes after getting some assistance from the City of Cape Town. Shacks belonging to South Africans and Zimbabweans just 200 metres away from Hout Bay police station were burnt to ashes.
Bernard Chiguvare
News | 18 November 2015