The Social Justice Coalition and Access to Basic Sanitation in Informal Settlements in Cape Town, South Africa

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil Overy
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
The Social ◽  
Basic Sanitation

scholarly journals Urban social movements in South Africa today: Its meaning for theological education and the church

2017 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephan F. De Beer
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Social Movements ◽  
Theological Education ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Urban Social Movements ◽  
Gustavo Gutierrez ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The Social ◽  
The City ◽  
The Church

In the past decade, significant social movements emerged in South Africa, in response to specific urban challenges of injustice or exclusion. This article will interrogate the meaning of such urban social movements for theological education and the church. Departing from a firm conviction that such movements are irruptions of the poor, in the way described by Gustavo Gutierrez and others, and that movements of liberation residing with, or in a commitment to, the poor, should be the locus of our theological reflection, this article suggests that there is much to be gained from the praxis of urban social movements, in disrupting, informing and shaping the praxis of both theological education and the church. I will give special consideration to Ndifuna Ukwazi and the Reclaim the City campaign in Cape Town, the Social Justice Coalition in Cape Town, and Abahlali baseMjondolo based in Durban, considering these as some of the most important and exciting examples of liberatory praxes in South Africa today. I argue that theological education and educators, and a church committed to the Jesus who came ‘to liberate the oppressed’, ignore these irruptions of the Spirit at our own peril.

scholarly journals Race, class and violent crime in South Africa: Dispelling the ‘Huntley thesis’

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gavin Silber ◽  
Nathan Geffen
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Violent Crime ◽  
Poor People ◽  
Community Based ◽  
The Social ◽  
Distribution Of Resources ◽  
New Community ◽  
Basic Infrastructure

Brandon Huntley was granted asylum in Canada earlier this year based on the argument that whites are disproportionately affected by crime in South Africa. The decision was generally condemned, but it did receive support from various groups and individuals including Afriforum, the Freedom Front and James Myburgh (editor of Politicsweb). In this article we show the flaws in Huntley's argument by presenting evidence from several sources that demonstrate that black and poor people are disproportionately the victims of violent crime in South Africa. We are concerned that painting whites as the primary victims of South Africa's social ills is unproductive, ungenerous and potentially hampers the appropriate distribution of resources to alleviate crime. Furthermore, in order to move the debate on crime in South Africa into a more productive direction, we also describe the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) – a relatively new community based organisation that aims to mobilise communities around improving safety and security for all in South Africa, regardless of race or income. Campaigning for novel pragmatic and coordinated community and government responses to the broader lack of safety and security in the country, the SJC focuses on the introduction and development of basic infrastructure and services as a means of reducing crime.

Water Quality and Diarrhoeal Diseases among Children in Informal Settlements in Cape Town, South Africa.

2018 ◽  
Vol 2017 (1) ◽  
pp. 951
Author(s):  
Guéladio Cissé ◽  
Nesre Redi ◽  
Samuel Fuhrimann ◽  
Aqiel Dalvie ◽  
Martin Roosli
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Water Quality ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Diarrhoeal Diseases

EVERYDAY POLITICS AND COLLECTIVE MOBILIZATION AGAINST FOREIGNERS IN A SOUTH AFRICAN SHACK SETTLEMENT

Africa ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamlyn Monson
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Social Distance ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Racial Identities ◽  
Shared Experiences ◽  
The Social ◽  
History Of ◽  
Equal Citizenship

ABSTRACTIn contrast to the tolerant and largely peaceful ‘living politics' of informal settlements, as embodied by the social movement Abahlali baseMjondolo, this article considers a darker side of squatter politics: ‘xenophobic’ mobilization. I show how the historical stratification of citizenship in South Africa remains spatially embedded in longstanding informal settlements, where distinctive repertoires of collective action have been shaped by a (still unfinished) history of struggle for inclusion. Using archival research and interviews conducted in the informal settlements of Atteridgeville, Gauteng, I show how the continuing struggle for equal citizenship draws on shared experiences of mundane hardship and collective labour, giving rise to social distance between established local squatters and politically indifferent foreign newcomers. At times of protest, this polarity is concentrated by and converges with familiar practices of insurgent citizenship, creating a context for mobilization against foreigners. In this sense, ‘xenophobic’ mobilization may be seen to articulate a claim for inclusion by structurally excluded ‘citizens', rather than an exclusionary claim by those who already belong. The article provides a useful counterpoint to readings of ‘xenophobic’ violence that focus on the role of elite discourses, instrumental leaders or crude racial identities in shaping such mobilization.

The MobiSan approach: informal settlements of Cape Town, South Africa

2010 ◽  
Vol 61 (12) ◽  
pp. 3078-3090 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Naranjo ◽  
D. Castellano ◽  
H. Kraaijvanger ◽  
B. Meulman ◽  
A. Mels ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
User Satisfaction ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Operating Cost ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Shallow Groundwater ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Basic Sanitation ◽  
Reducing Costs

Pook se Bos informal settlement and the Cape Town Water & Sanitation Services Department are partnering on an urban sanitation project with a Dutch Consortium consisting of Lettinga Associates Foundation (LeAF), Landustrie Sneek and Vitens-Evides International. The aim of the project is to improve the basic sanitation services provided in informal settlements through the implementation of the MobiSan approach. The approach consists of a communal Urine-Diversion and Dehydration Toilet (UDDT) built in a former sea shipping container. The system is independent of water, electricity or sewerage connection and it is maintained by full-time community caretakers who also act as hygiene promoters. The project seeks to link sanitation services with hygiene promotion in informal settlements while enhancing user satisfaction and reducing costs in providing basic sanitation services. This paper describes the preliminary experiences and lessons learnt during the implementation and evaluation of the MobiSan prototype and discusses its potential for replication. The MobiSan has proved to be an appropriate option by means of dealing successfully with shallow groundwater table, land availability and high settlement densities. In addition it has been demonstrated to be cost-competitive in terms of operating cost compared to chemical toilets.

Moral and Instrumental Rationales for Affirmative Action in Five National Contexts

2010 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele S. Moses
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Affirmative Action ◽  
News Media ◽  
The United States ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Court Decisions ◽  
State Legislation ◽  
The Social

The author’s primary aims are to clarify the differing rationales for affirmative action that have emerged in five nations—France, India, South Africa, the United States, and Brazil—and to make the case for the most compelling rationales, whether instrumentally or morally based. She examines the different social contexts surrounding the establishment and public discussion of each nation’s policy. Next, she examines four justifications for affirmative action in these nations: remediation, economics, diversity, and social justice. She offers philosophical analysis of the justifications for affirmative action in each country and synthesizes federal and state legislation, court decisions, news media sources, and research-based scholarship. She argues that the social justice rationale ought to be invoked more centrally, underscoring affirmative action’s role in fostering a democratic society.

scholarly journals Interface of Law and Medicine in Clinical Legal Education: Success story of the Women’s Law Clinic in improving the health of women and ensuring women’s access to Justice in Nigeria

2014 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevwe Omoragbon
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Legal Education ◽  
The United States ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Success Story ◽  
African Countries ◽  
The Social

<p>Specialist law clinics now operate both in the developed and developing world. The historical background of these specialist law clinics can be traced to the United States. They also abound in South Africa, Europe and are fast emerging in several African countries. It is however outside the scope of this paper to describe the wide variety of specialist law clinic models that exist in other countries.</p><p><br />At present in Nigeria, there are seven Nigerian Universities with law clinics. These law clinics in enhancing the social justice frontier have developed projects addressing specific problems; making them specialists in service delivery, but the Women’s Law Clinic, is the only gender specialist law clinic.</p>

scholarly journals Policy implementation considerations for basic services: A South African urban sanitation case

Water SA ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 45 (4 October) ◽  
Author(s):  
L Taing
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
National Policy ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Basic Sanitation ◽  
Local Actors ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
Policymaking And Implementation ◽  
The Republic

The Republic of South Africa formulated numerous progressive laws, regulations and strategies from 1994 to 2008 to support the provision of free basic sanitation access to the poor by 2014. The State has yet to achieve this objective in urban areas – ostensibly due to the poor municipal execution of national policy. This paper challenges this viewpoint, as it ignores policy weaknesses and overlooks the influence of non-municipal actors in service delivery. An assessment of national policy and implementation in South Africa’s second largest city (Cape Town) indicated that irreconcilable differences between municipal officials, residents and advocates’ interpretations of broadly-framed national policy, as well as policy gaps specific to servicing informal settlements and providing shared sanitation, contributed to the municipality’s failure to achieve policy objectives. The actors’ differences and policy shortcomings necessitated municipal policy reformulation according to the ‘lived’ and ‘practical’ realities of servicing informal settlements. The findings suggest a disproportionate focus on turning national policy into practice – for this viewpoint misses how local actors’ perspectives and current practices can shape policy. Understanding, accepting and addressing the interplay between policymaking and implementation can contribute to more constructive means of effectively delivering sanitation in South Africa.

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