Around 100 supporters, many of them Rhodes University academics and students, stood behind and around women displaced by looting and intimidation as they staged a protest outside the City Hall on Friday 30 October.
Around 100 supporters, many of them Rhodes University academics and students, stood behind and around women displaced by looting and intimidation as they staged a protest outside the City Hall on Friday 30 October.
On Wednesday 21 October, 300 spaza shops in Grahamstown East were looted, leaving the families owning them without the means to earn a living.
The women, who in a statement issued at the beginning of this week referred to themselves as Voices of the Foreigners’ Wives, sang, prayed and gave interviews to the media.
Dean of the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, Andrew Hunter led a prayer, and read a statement from the Anglican Bishop, Ebenezer Ntlali.
Academic and author Mishka Hoosen sang a prayer.
One of the group, Barbara-Anne Ali, read out their memorandum.
A long introduction to a list of eight demands outlined the socio-economic hardships in Grahamstown.
“Grahamstown has an average rate of 70% unemployment,” Ali read. “The majority are young people. Grahamstown is characterised by poor provision of clean and drinkable water.and its inconsistent provision of energy, which has resulted in water outages and loadshedding.
“The community of Grahamstown has witnessed increased levels of poverty, hunger and unemployment – a breeding ground for unlawful acts of criminality that threatens the culture of human rights.”
The memorandum noted that the municipality has been under administration “due to a host of issues ranging from poor leadership capacity, corruption, maladministration, bankruptcy, lack of strategic thinking and planning, and management”.
The final list of demands addressed a broad range of current and ongoing issues, including crime, xenophobia, employment, housing and services and religious discrimination, as well as that husbands be allowed to return to their families.
In a speech, Unemployed People’s Movement leader Ayanda Kota quoted from assassinated anti-apartheid student leader Onkopotso Tiro and also said, “We want to stop these xenophobic attacks, period.”
Kota slammed Makana Mayor Nomhle Gaga for not meeting the protesters to accept their memorandum.
The women and their families have been housed for the past week in a safe zone.
Along with private individuals and local businesses, Makana Municipality has since last Wednesday been providing a range of services to the displaced residents including social services, and assistance in replacing documents lost or destroyed in the looting.
In a stakeholders’ meeting on Friday 23 October, acting municipal manager Riana Meiring said Makana’s role was to render support in terms of its legislated functions, particularly disaster management.
In addition, Meiring said, the Council's role was to provide a link between the joint operations committee led by the SAPS to manage the crisis, and the community.
The JOC comprises representatives from organisations including the Department of Social Development, the South African National Civic Organisation and the SANDF.
Meiring said their first task was to tackle head-on the rumours that led to the xenophobic attacks.
A series of community meetings in which police and councillors are addressing the rumours, hearing people’s concerns about crime, and discussing how to reintegrate the displaced residents, began on Tuesday.
The Ministers Fraternal is leading this process.
A mass meeting is scheduled to take place at 3pm in the Indoor Sport Centre in Joza.
Following today’s protest, Grocott’s Mail established that the group had turned down an invitation to meet the Mayor at the city hall at 10am Friday, to discuss their needs and demands.
“They did phone this morning,” Rabiah Hoosin told Grocott’s Mail later on Friday 30 October. “We said, we can’t meet at your office – come and meet us [at the offices of a local NGO].
"Our mayor should have [written]a letter to us or just sent us an SMS that invites us to a meeting with her," Hoosin later texted by way of clarification.
"But anyway we are still interested to meet with her."
The looting began at 12.30pm on Wednesday 21 October in what police and business owners confirm was a well orchestrated action across Grahamstown’s townships.
Many township residents have called for the shopkeepers to return, because their absence means they have to travel long distances to buy basic household supplies.
*Edited from original version to clarify time references, and correct spelling.
sue@grocotts.co.za
