Building Peace in the Rainbow Nation: October 2019 Update

Scenes of Anarchy in Somerset West

Article by SAPeople Apr 11, 2019

https://www.sapeople.com/2019/04/11/scenes-of-anarchy-in-somerset-west-and-strand-land-grab-south-africa/

“Violent protestors are blocking the N2 between Somerset West and Cape Town, as they carry out a “land grab” on a private piece of property, opposite a school in the area. The illegal land invasion began last Tuesday when people began knocking posts into the land to stake their claim on it.”

Dear Friends,

The above headline describes a situation all too common in South Africa. This particular episode happened to be right here where we live. “What are the people protesting?” you may ask. As is the case throughout history, desperate people turn to desperate measures, and in South Africa, people have become conditioned to believe that they will only be listened to once they take action, often violent, that demands the attention of those in power and authority. These protesters usually live in impoverished communities, residentially over-populated and under-served by city utilities. Government-imposed electricity blackouts (to reduce load demand) often affect their areas first and for longer periods of time. Broken sewage systems take longer to repair. Polluted streets and alleys never get cleaned up. Protesters decry the unjust conditions in which they live by forcing drivers on the national highway to be delayed (or in some cases endangered), and requiring municipal crews to come deal with their disruptions.

In the case described above, frustrated individuals were attempting to lay claim to vacant land which lies right next to their over-flowing community and the freeway. The land is government owned, but remains there empty, day after day, insulting those without adequate housing and tempting them to claim it and make living use of it for themselves. It’s a harsh reality and is just one of the many symptoms of modern-day South Africa which contributes to the complexity of creating just living situations for all. The photo above (taken by Kathryn) shows the intersection where this protest happened. On the right you can see the open land with bright yellow wild flowers. On the left can be seen the Aquatic Centre for one of the most expensive private schools in the region, sitting in stark contrast to the shack-strewn, over-crowded township literally a stone’s throw away.

In a sermon given recently by Kathryn to the local Unitarian Fellowship, she described a related incident to the situation above and how SADRA had a hand in non-violently addressing it. She writes:

History has taught people in townships that destruction gets attention, which gets things done, and part of what SADRA does is train community leaders in non-violence and mediation, so they can help in constructive ways forward. Here’s an example of an intervention several months ago: Residents of two neighboring settlements, Pholile and Desert, in our local township, Lwandle, got into a dispute. Pholile has no electrical service and appealed to the residents of Desert, which is serviced, to allow for electrical connection to be made via their poles. The Desert residents felt sorry for their neighbors and agreed, so long as it didn’t cause disruption to their power. However, as more and more shacks were added to the power lines, this caused an overload and power surges whereby the poles and transformers burnt up. This also caused damage to the connected appliances owned by the Desert residents. They were very angry and threatened violence against the Pholile residents.

The Ward Councilor was called in and he invited our local SADRA trained mediators to assist. They convened a meeting with residents of both communities and heard all the complaints and issues. They also got them to agree not to harm one another. The mediators then went to the Municipality to impart what they learned to the Services office. The Municipality was prepared to provide electricity to Pholile, but the land was owned by SANRAL (South African National Roads Agency Ltd.), so they needed SANRAL’s written authorization first, which is why this action had been delayed for so long. The mediators then went to SANRAL themselves and called another meeting including residents, the mayor, Municipality officials and SANRAL agents, which finally resulted in SANRAL giving their permission for the electricity to be installed in the informal settlement. The municipality began the work promptly and good relations were restored between the two communities. The mediators were even able to get the Municipality to agree to assist the residents with insurance claims for the loss of the damaged appliances.

SADRA continues to train community and church leaders, such as Pastor Anele Paliso and Pastor

Kathryn with Pastor Paliso (left) and Pastor Makasi (right), two

of the trained Mediators who helped with this conflict settlement.

Lizo Makasi, who have deep impact in their communities. These two were part of SADRA’s mediation team helping with South Africa’s National election last May. The mediation panel of over 30 trained mediators spent months in preparation (largely unpaid) becoming ready to engage the areas of greatest tension, many of these in townships and squatter camps of recent immigrants. These community leaders are helping guide South Africa toward a future of greater peace, justice and prosperity for all. It has been our great joy and a blessing to work with them and to witness what they are doing in helping neighbors live together more peacefully.

The challenges facing South Africa are great. Even this year there have been more incidents of xenophobic attacks on foreigners. This is why the work SADRA does is so vital. Peace comes through individuals listening to one another and overcoming the walls of hostility by building new relationships, as well as addressing the material injustices.