Disaster management regulations are being exploited to facilitate land occupations
26 August 2020
The disaster management regulations, which stipulate that evictions may not be carried out, are being exploited by land occupants and certain political parties to promote illegal land occupations. There has been a significant increase in illegal occupations.
The interim interdict that was granted today in the Cape Town High Court, which determines that the City of Cape Town may not evict people from their houses or take down structures, whether occupied or not, is very dangerous.
If this interim interdict were to be made a court order later, it will create a dangerous precedent.
The disaster management regulations that relate to evictions must be amended. It is unacceptable that the regulations allow illegal land occupants to occupy land without being removed.
This not only threatens ownership, but also has potential for causing serious conflict seeing as landowners who can no longer approach the court to protect their property may possibly take the law into their own hands to protect what belongs to them.
The court ruling also creates the impression that people may exploit the current period of lockdown to unlawfully occupy land as no action can be taken against them and this raises the question of how long the state of disaster will remain in place.
There are certain political parties that are using the lockdown period to further their political and populist agendas.
The FF Plus is of the opinion that the regulations must be amended immediately and that the interdict must be appealed. The regulations are creating an intolerable situation in the country that illegal land occupants can easily exploit despite President Cyril Ramaphosa's earlier statements that action will be taken against illegal land occupants and that land-grabbing will not be tolerated.
These regulations and subsequent ruling by the court make a mockery of the President's assurances.
Issued by Pieter Groenewald, FF Plus leader, 26 August 2020
