Protesters demand release of arrested Hermanus land-grabbers

Protesters marched to the Magistrate’s Court in Hermanus on Tuesday‚ calling for the release of people arrested during a thwarted land grab in the coastal town.

Vehicles‚ a satellite police station and part of a library were burned when protesters clashed with police and a security company after plots of land were marked out in March. Scores of people were arrested.

Looters stole stock from foreign-owned shops and foreign families were forced to flee.

Gcobani Ndzongana‚ an activist and administrator of the Facebook page Zwelihle Renewal‚ said in a post on Monday evening that residents of the township would march to the court to "demand the release of those who are arrested ... It’s all shut down no work for your safety."

Some of the arrested residents are appearing in court on Tuesday.

Pictures of the marchers‚ escorted by police‚ were tweeted early on Tuesday.

Hermanus online also tweeted images of the marchers outside court.

Residents of Zwelihle said they were fed up with living in back yards and complained of being forced to wait years in the hope of getting a home of their own. Nomaza Nomandela, one of the "back yarders" involved in the attempted land grab earlier‚ said she had been on a local housing list for 12 years.

"I received a letter that indicated my house was ready in May 2016‚" she said. "I took all the necessary documents to the local municipal office‚ but when I got there officials told me that I do not qualify for a house because I earned more than R3‚500."

Nomandela‚ who works as a cleaner‚ shares the back yard‚ which has one toilet‚ with four other families. Her rent was recently hiked from R200 to R600 because she has a big family.

The protests also saw foreign-owned businesses being looted, which forced many people to flee from Zwelihle. Somali shopkeeper Abdala Gedi was forced to abandon his shop during the chaos last month.

Western Cape Human Settlements MEC Bonginkosi Madikizela told residents last month that their pleas had been heard. "We, as government, made the mistake that people living in the informal settlements are the only ones that need our help. The back yarders also need our help. We need to get the money from national government to make sure this process runs as speedily as possible."