On 24 August 2012, 46 applicants who collectively refer to themselves as the “Forgotten Poor Black Citizens of South Africa” approached the Constitutional Court to make an application for direct access to the Court. The applicants seek an order from the Court setting aside a number of court orders from lower courts. The applicants declined the suggestion to obtain legal representation and, in order to further its understanding of the matter, the Court requested SERI and the Legal Resources Centre (LRC) to conduct an initial investigation into the application and to compile a report of the findings. SERI and the LRC found that at the core, the majority of the matters the applicants seek to bring under appeal point very strongly to potentially far-reaching systemic failures in the process of evictions and executions concerning residential property. 

 

This research report investigates the impact of formalisation of informal trading in Durban, South Africa on informal traders - in particular women and foreign traders - and provides some recommendations for policy-makers, city officials and traders. For queries on the report or to get hard copies, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.