CITY’S AMENDMENTS TO THE STREETS BY-LAW: A STEP BACKWARDS IN ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS

PRESS RELEASE: 28 November 2024 Ndifuna Ukwazi strongly condemns the City of Cape Town’s proposed amendments to the Streets, Public Places, and Prevention of Noise Nuisances By-law, 2007 (“Streets By-law”). While minor revisions have been made, the amendment retains punitive measures that criminalise homelessness, perpetuating a harmful and unconstitutional approach to one of Cape Town’s…

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NDIFUNA UKWAZI OBJECTS TO BREE STREET MICRO-APARTMENTS IN CAPE TOWN CBD

PRESS STATEMENT 31 October 2024 Yesterday, 30 October 2024, Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU) lodged an objection to the proposed redevelopment of a 40-storey mixed-use building in the Cape Town Central Business District, which includes 442 micro-apartments. The objection highlights significant concerns regarding the impact of these small-sized units on the city’s housing landscape, particularly their potential…

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Learning Exchange – October 2024

Leveraging Democratic Participation and the 2026 Local Election to Advance Equitable Access to Land and Housing 29 October 2024 This past week, Ndifuna Ukwazi had the privilege of hosting a Regional Learning Exchange, focusing on leveraging democratic participation and the upcoming 2026 local elections to advance equitable access to land and housing. The exchange brought…

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Ndifuna Ukwazi welcomes recent progress on the redevelopment of the Mowbray Golf Course

Press Release 2 October 2024 On Monday 1 October 2024, the City of Cape Town announced that the mayoral committee had given its approval to conduct public participation for the redevelopment of the Mowbray Golf Course. The City has stated that it intends to create a mixed-use, mixed-income development at Mowbray Golf Course including affordable…

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Cissie Gool House – August 2024

Joint Statement – Reclaim the City & Ndifuna Ukwazi Immediate Release  28 August 2024 Cissie Gool House proposed eviction –  A convenient excuse for CoCT’s lack of well-located affordable housing? Reclaim the City and Ndifuna Ukwazi are both extremely concerned about the City of Cape Town’s ongoing reluctance to meaningfully engage with the occupiers of…

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Ally Al-Habsy

OCCUPIERS LEFT OUT IN THE RAIN AFTER ILLEGAL & VIOLENT EVICTION BY PRASA, RESULTING IN THE STABBING OF AN ELDERLY MAN

Press Release: 27 August 2024 Ndifuna Ukwazi has urgently sought a high court interdict against PRASA following the illegal eviction on 19 and 22 August of occupiers who had been living in informal structures and tents on Transnet-owned land for over 20 years. PRASA Protection Services and other security officers demolished homes, confiscated building materials…

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CALLS ON THE CITY OF CAPE TOWN TO RETRACT LETTERS OF INTENTION TO SELL THE LONG-STANDING FAMILY HOME OF A WORKING CLASS FAMILY IN ATHLONE

7 August 2024 Press Release: For Immediate Release NDIFUNA UKWAZI CALLS ON THE CITY OF CAPE TOWN TO RETRACT LETTERS OF INTENTION TO SELL THE LONG-STANDING FAMILY HOME OF A WORKING CLASS FAMILY IN ATHLONE Mrs Jamielah Levy’s family has been living in Tancred Street, Athlone for the past 70 years. On 15 May 2024,…

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LAND AND HOUSING SCHOOL 2024

Join us at the Land and Housing School 2024 Starting in July, our annual Land & Housing School brings together individuals from diverse communities and social movements for an enriching four-month journey. Together, we’ll delve into crucial topics identified by activists and concerned citizens like you, addressing the pressing challenges we face in advocating for…

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Land4Peoplenot4Parking

This report is part of the #Land4PeopleNot4Parking campaign. The campaign is coordinated by Reclaim the City, Housing Assembly, Indibano Yabahlali, COVID-19 and Ndifuna Ukwazi. This work builds on years of dedicated work by leaders and activists of these and other land and housing movements from Cape Town and beyond.

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Land4PeopleNOT4Parking: Campaign

Joint Press Release:  COVID-19, Housing Assembly, Indibano Yabahlali, Ndifuna Ukwazi, and Reclaim the City Date: 24 April 2024 Images: [link to High Res Images: https://jmp.sh/2eltY3e4] Land4PeopleNot4Parking #Land4PeopleNot4Parking #DesegregateCT How can the parking of government cars for part of the day be more important than providing roofs over people’s heads? Could the storage of immobile government…

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Bromwell Street Case heads to Constitutional Court in challenge to the constitutionality of the City of Cape Town’s response to emergency housing needs

PRESS STATEMENT: 22 February 2024 The Constitutional Court will hear the Bromwell Street matter on Tuesday, 27th February 2024, marking a critical juncture in the fight for housing justice and tenant rights. At the heart of the case lies the constitutionality of the City of Cape Town’s housing programme and its actions in responding to…

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Rest in Peace: Alan Roberts

We mourn the loss of our trustee, Mr Alan Roberts who succumbed to COVID complications. Alan was a distinguished trade unionist, activist and freedom fighter during Apartheid. In 1994, Alan served as an advisor to the Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs and subsequently worked as the Western Cape Land Claims Commissioner for three years.…

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NDIFUNA UKWAZI SEEKS INTERVENTION IN LANDMARK DISTRICT SIX CASE TO ADVOCATE FOR RACIAL REDRESS AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Press Release 20 February 2024 Yesterday, 19 February 2024, Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU) applied to the Western Cape High Court to intervene as amicus curiae (friend of the court) in a significant case concerning the historic District Six neighbourhood in Cape Town. The main application, launched by six families residing in Searle Street, District Six, on…

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Vacancy: Attorney – Deadline for Applications 24 January 2024* CORRECTION – FRIDAY 27 JANUARY

Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU) is an activist organization and law center that promotes the realization of  constitutional rights and social justice through providing organizing, research and legal support and  representation to poor and working class people, communities and social movements. We work to  advance urban land justice in Cape Town through the protection and expansion of…

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NU December Auction

  BID FOR A PIECE OF URBAN LAND JUSTICE HISTORY! AN NU DECEMBER FUNDRAISER THIS WEEKEND ONLY Have your own A3 Photograph which documents some of the work done by NU and RTC over the last few years. All photos taken by our very own Zacharia Mashele. Bids can be made directly on Instagram in…

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NDIFUNA UKWAZI’S COMMENT ON THE INDEPENDENT POLICE INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTORATE (IPID) AMENDMENT BILL, 2023 [B21-2023]

NDIFUNA UKWAZI’S COMMENT ON THE INDEPENDENT POLICE INVESTIGATIVE DIRECTORATE (IPID) AMENDMENT BILL, 2023 [B21-2023] Ndifuna Ukwazi is a non-profit activist organisation and law centre that combines research, organising and litigation in campaigns to advance urban land justice in Cape Town. Our primary mission is to expand and protect access to affordable housing and build an…

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The People’s Land Map

Press Release (re-issue of statement 4 September 2023) 21 September 2023   Do the People have a right to access information on Public Land? The People’s Land Map Launch takes place Friday 22 September In 2016 NU asked the question, how much vacant and underutilised public land is really available in the City of Cape Town…

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Vacancy: Community Organiser Intern

This is a short-term limited appointment to start immediately, ending 31 December 2023  We are looking for a passionate, committed individual with strong organising, mobilising and community campaign skills to join Ndifuna Ukwazi’s team as a “Community Organiser Intern” with immediate effect. Key responsibilities include the following:  Building meaningful relationships of trust with partners and…

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Ndifuna Ukwazi offers Political and Legal education related to Housing and Evictions in Cape Town

Ndifuna Ukwazi invites any member of the public to join its  free 3-month Advice Assembly programme at the Bertha House in Mowbray. Advice Assembly is a weekly community education programme designed to help participants understand the laws that govern eviction in South Africa, equipping them with the legal and political knowledge to tackle unfair practices…

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Ndifuna Ukwazi Housing Clinic

The NU Housing Clinic works on a first-come first-serve basis to accommodate walk-ins, but encourages interested parties to make an appointment through political organiser and paralegal Ntombi Sambu. Call or Whatsapp: 0623529372 Email: ntombi@nu.org.za Address: 18 Roland Street, Cape Town The Clinic operates on Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s only, excluding public holidays. It does not charge for…

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Military land for homes not weapons!

READ PDF PRESS STATEMENT HERE: 29 Mar 2023 Military Land Press statement Military land for homes not weapons! Weak intergovernmental collaboration and a lack of urgency are entrenching the housing crisis. The national government owns enough vacant and underutilised land in Cape Town to deliver hundreds of thousands of homes and materially reduce the housing…

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Bromwell Street, protest, Supreme court of appeal

Supreme Court of Appeal orders City of Cape Town to provide Bromwell families with emergency accommodation in a location as close as possible by May 2023, and upholds their Appeal

8 February 2023 The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) handed down judgment in the Bromwell Matter on 6 February 2023. The matter was heard on 14 November 2022. Judge Mabindla-Boqwana of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), with the full bench concurring, set aside the High Court order in the Bromwell Street Matter which declared…

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Final Newsletter of 2022

  Dear *|FNAME|*  A year of progress! 2022 has been an incredible year of progress in housing and land rights. After years of advocacy, political & protest actions and relentless pressure, we are starting to see a shifting tide in Cape Town.First and foremost, 2022 marks the year where five parcels of land in the inner…

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Regulating the Private Sector

Regulating the Private Sector

10 November 2022 “Regulating the Private Sector: Case Studies in Inclusionary Housing Developments in Cape Town”, is a report which documents and draws out learnings from NU’s five-year experience of advocating for inclusionary housing through the Municipal Planning Tribunal in the City of Cape Town from early 2017 through to August 2022.     The…

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A New Approach to Homelessness

Clint Hendricks is one of the residents in Rainbow House in Observatory. Rainbow House has provided a home, refuge and a safe space for people who were facing homelessness. We have been documenting stories of transition for residents living in the house, this video features Clint Hendricks who was once homeless and is now embarking…

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EMPTY PLOTS, EMPTY PROMISES

On 16 July, Reclaim the City & Ndifuna Ukwazi held a commemoration walking tour to reset pressure on the City of Cape Town to meet its constitutionally mandated obligation to address spatial apartheid through advancing access to land and adequate housing in well-located areas. The demands of RTC & NU is for the City to…

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