The group of refugees who have been occupying spaces around the Cape Town CBD since October 2019, say they are “starving” since food supplies delivered by NGOs have dried up, with workers having stayed home due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Speaking to The South African, leader Papy Sukami, who has been implicated in various assault charges currently being heard at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court, said that his followers have been struggling for resources as they sleep on the streets outside the Cape Town Central police station.
“The people who were bringing us food have stopped, they don’t have resources,” he said. “It’s terrible.”
‘Dangerous conditions untenable’
He said that as far as he knew, there had been no positive coronavirus cases among the 200-plus refugees who have been appealing to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to assist them in their bid to move to a country where they will be safe from xenophobia.
Sukami noted however that they were living in dangerous conditions because they don’t have access to clean water or sanitation supplies.
“Luckily there are no cases,” he said. “But with everything that is happening, it is not safe for them to be staying on the street.”
He admitted that he couldn’t be sure of the health status of the group for certain because they had not undergone full testing procedures.
A further seven refugees will join their comrades today after they were released from prison on R500 bail each.
They were arrested following a complaint from the St Mary’s Catholic Church, who objected to their occupation of the church following their eviction from the streets surrounding Greenmarket Square.
City of Cape Town to relocate refugees to shelter
Sukami said that he was “very grateful” for the City’s offer to move the group into a shelter over the weekend.
“The weather is changing soon. It will rain in the next few months and we cannot sleep out in the cold.”
The City’s Mayoral Committee Member for safety and security Alderman JP Smith told The South African that he had offered the group bed space in some of the night shelters around the city, but said that he does not know yet whether they have decided to accept the proposal.
He said that the City would stick to its word and keep the offer on the table, but warned that they would have to cooperate respectfully.
“The City offered them shelter several weeks ago, and they refused it,” he said. “We remain willing to help them at such point as they decide to take us up on the offer.
“We will assist them and provide transport, but they must be sincere with us if they want to engage because they have given us quite a run-around up to this point.”
Church-dwelling refugees face eviction
Meanwhile, a second faction of the group that remained inside the Central Methodist Mission Church in Greenmarket Square may be evicted if a court order is obtained by the property owner, who says that their occupancy of the space is a severe health risk even without the current coronavirus concerns.
“The grounds [for the court application] are what we’ve been saying all along – it’s been a health and safety risk from the beginning, which I mentioned when people were already there,” said Reverend Alan Storey.
“They are attempting to practise frequent hand washing, etc. But the truth is the conditions inside the sanctuary are ripe for a virus of any sort to spread, let alone the highly contagious coronavirus. As a result, our legal processes are addressing this matter with increased urgency.”
The leader of the church faction, Jean-Pierre “JP” Balous, appeared in court on Thursday for his latest hearing. He is charged with eight counts of assault, five of which are for intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Source: The South African Read More
