There have been more than 5000 protests over service delivery around South
September 2006. This is information exchanged in the South African parliament, cited by an opposition spokesperson in a discussion on how these DIULCOLO have CONC assume a violent nature of late.
Communities have been blockading highways into major cites in support of demands for decent housing and service provision. Conflicts have arisen about who should be given houses that have been constructed.
During protest actions newly constructed dwellings have been damaged as acts of defiance against an increasingly repressive and stubborn government.
Cabinet level investigations as to the underlying causes of the protests have a familiar ring. In 2005 Minister Kasrils was assigned the job of investigating the causes of the revolts that occurred then.
In 2007 minister S.Mafumadi has been assigned to do the same work. The involvement of the Human Rights Commission is meant to add weight to the urgency of this undertaking.
Communities such as the Joe Slovo residents in Cape Town have resorted to court action to prevent them being forced to move to an area (Delft) where they will effectively be denied opportunities to earn a livelihood and for children to continue their education.
Councillors have been forced to flee townships SUCe people have grown tired of the lies and deceit these political representatives have been dishing up for a very long time.
The concerns of the ruling elite stems from the failure of the government's neoliberal policies of to address and fundamentally solve the housing and unemployment problems of the workers and landless peasants.
To hide this failure government spokespersons and its mainstream capitalist media companions have been resorling explanations that are themselves beginning to wear thin.
The office of the presidency parrots the standard line that the legacy of colonialism and apartheid can Defenders of the system as a matter of course argue that the time - a mere 13 years - that government has had is too short. The reasoning is that people who've been on a housing list for 20 years might as well wait another 20 years ... not be undone in a mere 13 yeals In 1994 the then president Mr Nelson Mandela assured the poor masses that it will take at least 5 years for any tangible benefits to become evident.
Double that time has elapsed and the accelerated downward spiral into the morass of being social outcasts is evident for all to see.
Repeated assurances that policies are in order but that proper implementation is lacking is the stock in trade argument advanced by government. If implementation and not policy is the problem then all kinds of convenient arguments can be advanced in support thereof.
One argument is the time factor. Defenders of the system as a matter of course argue that the time - a mere 13 years - that government has had is too short.
The reasoning is that people who've been on a housing list for 20 years might as well wait another down again. 20 years since they've managed to survive all those years irrespective.
Despite high profile programmes such as the pilot in Cape Town (which is throwing up more problems than it is solving) the housing need is growing and the impatience of people growing apace.
The upgrading of squatter settlements programme of the government (as part of the national housing department's "Breaking New Ground" strategy) is part of grandiose plans to create "sustainable human settlements". Squatter settlements are targeted for elimination by 2014.
A second point is that skills development of those in charge of municipalities is in need of upgrading and that this in itself takes time.
This spurious argument neglects to add that thousands of unemployed graduates and many thousands having been made redundant through neo-liberal rationalization practices can be truittully employed to assist in municipal systems development.
The first ANC government elected in 1994 introduced GEAR, the policy on Growth, Employment and Redistribution. This particular neo-liberal programme has been the guiding principle behind the direction of national policy ever since.
An emerging trend flowing from the protests reveals the emergence of new organizations in the form of civic bodies and ad hoc bodies. In view of the localised nature of protests, unese revols tend to flare up and die
In a number of cases the attacks on councillors and their properties represent a direct indictment of the N2 Gateway housing project policies and practices of the entire government - not level. democracy sounds hollow if political this means denying communities active opportunities to • Julian Sauls is a express how they believe their communities should be run.
Instead the views of bureaucrats and consultants are what counts. Instead of grassroots participation in the running of their lives people are beaten up and arrested for expressing their opinions through direct protest actions.
Government is also quick to point out that those involved in protest actions are advancing 'narrow individual interests' and represent the views of a minority. This is not borne out by factual realities.
In the light of these revolts an unending propaganda stream of proposed accelerated implementation of policies on land reform, skills training, housing construction and the like has been forthcoming.
The question however still Tenan is the capitalist GEAR policy capable of succeeding in solving problems of homelessness and unemployment? Definitely not.
Will changes in political personnel In government ranks make a difference? It can only amount to a variation on the theme of destructive capitalism, not a radical departure in tundamental policies.
The localised struggles of communities are happening at a time when struggles against GEAR policies and capitalist enterprises are assuming greater prominence and visibility.
Apart from the service delivery struggles, strike actions in the country have varied from being low key and short in duration, to being massive and highly emotive.
An urgent and immediate only government at local task for all progressives is for these struggles to be dynamThe ANC talk of defending ically linked and placed on a
programmatic basis. member of APDUSA (the African People's Democratic Union of South