Tragic fire in Durban S.A. destroys hundreds of homes, 2 dead

Durban - Situated not that far from the FIFA World Cup competition, the Durban informal settlement has seen more than its share of strife and hard times.

A press release from the Abahlali baseMjondo, an organization made up of residents of informal settlements in South Africa, stated July 4th that 3 people had died in a fire Monday that swept through the Kennedy Road settlement; destroying some 800 homes. About 3,000 people are now homeless. The fire had destroyed belongings as well, prompting the organization to say

"If people were given land, houses and electricity, there would be no fires. The only reason that there are fires in the shacks is because they are un-electrified. The only reason there are fires in the shacks is because of the failure of the Municipality to provide services."

An article in the Sowetan downplays the damages from the fire, saying some 500 shacks burnt. In Johannesburg on Monday night, a similar fire destroyed 29 shacks, leaving 70 people without homes and belongings, killing one. No one knows what caused the fires, but police suspect parafin cook stoves or candles were the origin of the fires. Members of Abahlali baseMjondo say the problem originates with the end of Apartheid, when the residents of the Kennedy Road settlement were promised the government would allow them to live permanently on the site, which was originally settled in the 1960s. During the 80's, the government said it would provide the settlement with electricity and toilets, but the government retracted that promise shortly after. Ever since, there has been pressure on the Kennedy Road residents to move out, including eviction attempts. Some residents of Kennedy Road tell their stories in No Land, No House, No Vote!, a book anticipated to be available in October. Residents are asking for help, claiming no government representatives came to visit the community after the devastating fire, reported Abahlali.

"... The government can bring the World Cup, but cannot bring housing, electricity, rubbish collection, water, toilets, or land for the poor.

... Abahlali condemns the Municipality for making these promises, and for failing to deliver. Abahlali calls for support for all victims of the fire, and for a fair distribution of relief."

Abahlali said Kennedy Road residents needed:

"- ... supply of building materials, so that the people can rebuild their homes, for themselves.

- A ... reinstatement of the development project that was planned for Kennedy. An Abahlali technical team for this project met on the 21st of this month with the Municipality, calling for immediate action.

- The people of Kennedy Road are tired of the lies and promises from government. They are sick and tired of Nigel Gumede, the Chairperson of the Housing Porfolio in the eThekwini Municipality. They are sick and tired of their suffering being exploited.

- The people reject the Amatins as adequate housing. They also reject the tenders and tenderpreneurs, giving rise to these shack fires.

Abahlali would like to remind the media that the Constitutional Court, in overturning the Slums Act, made a statement against the Amatins. These Amatins are unconstitutional, and undermine human dignity. Abahlali will not rest in peace until each and every shack-dweller is housed.

Abahlali would like to send condolences to the families who have died in this shack fire, and in past shack fires. There have been a total of five shack fires in Kennedy Road since January 2010. In all these shack fires, the Municipality has sent no one. Abahlali, lastly, would like to ask: Whose child must be burned before the authorities act?"

Durban's Daily News reported

"Anglican Archbishop Thabo Makgoba also urged the province and municipality to responding to residents' housing needs and their other long-standing concerns.

On Monday, the African National Congress conveyed its condolences to the families of those who died."

The informal settlement on Kennedy Road has long been the focus of violence. Last fall, a raid on the shanty town by armed men, was alleged to have been led by the ANC. The attack left many people seriously injured, two people were killed. Many South Africans were evicted from their informal settlements and moved "temporarily" to new locations ahead of the FIFA World Cup. Residents of the temporary resettlements characterize the imposed community as a "concentration camp" the Guardian reported earlier this year. Part of the resistance mounted by the poor living in informal settlements includes an alternate soccer competition, the Poor People's World Cup wrote the Huffington Post. It is thought that 7,000 people live at the Kennedy Road settlement.