LRC takes on Cape Town over evictions
The Legal Resources Centre (LRC) has taken the City of Cape Town to court to prevent further demolition of shacks and evictions of residents.
Yesterday, notes the Cape Argus, the centre filed papers at the Western Cape High Court.
In a statement, the LRC said: ‘What we are hoping to achieve … is a declaration that the city’s actions are unlawful and unconstitutional.’
Over the Easter holiday, the city demolished about 30 shacks belonging to land occupiers in Empolweni informal settlement in Khayelitsha.
The LRC said: ‘We will seek a declaration that the act of sending law enforcement to evict people of Empolweni is unlawful, and material seized by the city should be returned to the community immediately.’
The rights group said the city’s actions were unlawful in the current lockdown context since the Minister had called for all evictions to be suspended.
Judge President John Hlophe had instructed judges to suspend eviction applications, including the execution against residential immovable property, until 17 April.
Mayco member for human settlements Malusi Booi said the city had acted in a proper manner. ‘Some people see the lockdown as an opportunity to illegally occupy land… This goes against a direct instruction of the President… the city will continue to protect its land and will remove illegal structures.’
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.
