One dead, several injured after another Glebelands shooting
23 October 2017
Durban – There has been yet another killing at the infamous Glebelands Hostel in Umlazi, south of Durban, following a late night shootout, police said on Monday.
A shootout in Block K on Friday left several injured, including a woman and two men, police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane said.
Zwane said the motive for the shooting was yet to be determined.
"Charges of attempted murder and murder were opened at Umlazi police station for investigation."
Community activist Vanessa Burger said local residents believed that there was an increase in the number of attacks on people living in blocks near the old tennis courts, including Blocks H, I, J, K, L in recent months.
The area was previously largely untouched by the hostel violence.
"Sources allege the deceased – originally from Harding - was a former resident of Block 49, having fled to Block K after the violence began a few years ago," she said.
According to Burger, the hostel-related death toll was now at a whopping 95.
Burger said that despite numerous arrests and countless police operations at Glebelands, only one killer has been sentenced since the assassinations began on March 13, 2014.
An Amnesty International report published this year stated that 60 people were killed at the hostel between March 2014 and November 2016.
A Public Protector report found that poor rental control by the eThekwini Municipality was to blame for the high rate of murders in the residential complex.
The Moerane Commission in Durban has been tasked with investigating the underlying causes of political killings in KZN, as the province accounts for the bulk of political killings in the country.
It was set up by Premier Willies Mchunu in October 2016 and began its inquiry in March, working on a R15m budget.
Scores of people have been killed in the hostel. At the inquiry, the hostel was described as a haven for hitmen doing politicians' and criminals' bidding.
