Today after a lost docket and refusal to register an unlawful evictions case, the police finally opened the case. Black First Land First (BLF) has been assisting the victim of unlawful evictions by Ekurhuleni Mayor Mzwandile Masina in the Duduza settlement in Thembisa. Masina has no court order and is in contravention of the Covid-19 lockdown regulations with regards to the evictions.
The police tried to protect Masina by disappearing the docket of the first case opened on 29 August 2020. Then on 2nd September 2020 the same case was opened but the police refused yet again to register the case. Today the President of BLF accompanied the victims of the unlawful actions and insisted that BLF would not leave until a case number is given. Eventually the police did find the second docket, which they also had said was missing, and then registered the case.
This is a historic development because unlawful evictions have not been prosecuted despite the PIE Act explicitly making them criminal offences. BLF shall monitor the progress in the case. In the event that the NPA refuses to prosecute Masina, then the route of private prosecution shall be followed. This shall send a clear message against municipalities that brutalize the poor.
Issued by Black First Land First, National Coordinating Committee of (BLF NCC)
14 September 2020
Contact Details
Black First Land First Mail: [email protected]
Zanele Lwana
(BLF Deputy President)
Cell: +27 79 986 7225