Cape Town - Two community leaders from Ethembeni Informal Settlement in Harare appeared in the Khayelitsha Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, after a group of residents clashed with the City’s law enforcement officers on Tuesday.
One of the community leaders, Riaan Koeberg, said the arrested leaders included Bulelani Qolani, whom law enforcement officers dragged naked from shack in July last year, and Alex Madikane.
Koeberg said the officers approached them while they were trying to assist a family whose home had burnt down earlier this week, and thought they were rebuilding new homes (shacks) and allegedly shot at them.
He said four of the residents were rushed to hospital with gunshot wounds.
Police spokesperson FC van Wyk said law enforcement officers arrested two suspects, aged 28 and 47, on charges of public violence at the corner of Baden Powell Drive and Mew Way.
He said it was alleged that the community members were illegally erecting shacks on an open field, and that when the officers demolished the shacks, the members of the community became riotous, which resulted in two of them being arrested.
The City said they acted within the parameters of the law to prevent the unlawful occupation of land, and they condemned the attacks on staff performing their duties.
Residents also opened a case, claiming the officers shot at them and demolished their shacks.
Van Wyk confirmed that the police were also investigating a case of malicious damage to property. He said the case was registered against the law enforcement officers after they allegedly destroyed the shack of a woman when they were evicting illegal residents.
Human Settlements MEC Tertuis Simmers said land invasions of state-owned properties in the past three weeks of August have been below 10 incidents a week.
Simmers said in week one of the month, there were eight attempts, followed by nine in week two, and another nine during the third week of August.
He said all the attempts, which amounted to 26, occurred in the Cape Metro and none in the non-Metro municipal areas. This was lower than the 49 attempts in July.
He said that from July last year to date, there have been 1 305 attempted land invasions across the Western Cape.