2023
- SERI welcomes the commencement of the Khampepe Commission of Inquiry into Usindiso Building fire (27 October 2023). On 26 October 2023, the Khampepe Commission of Inquiry into the fire at the Usindiso Shelter in Marshalltown commenced. The fire on 31 August 2023 claimed the lives of over 70 people and left hundreds more injured and destitute. The Commission of Inquiry was established by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi to inquire into the circumstances of the fire that caused these deaths and injuries and the prevalence of ‘hijacked buildings’ in the inner city of Johannesburg. The Commission has also been tasked with making findings about who should be held responsible and to draw lessons from the incident, considering the ongoing investigations carried out by the police and other bodies. The Commission will make recommendations about appropriate steps that must be taken and by whom and it has been given six months to complete its work. The Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI) welcomes the commencement of the Commission of Inquiry. We have placed on record our intention to participate and will also act as legal representatives for the Inner City Federation (ICF) in their participation at the Commission. The former residents of the Usindiso shelter and victims of the fire will be represented by Norton Rose Attorneys. (17 November 2022). >> Read the full statement here.
- City of Johannesburg’s wake up call: fire at Usindiso Shelter for Women and Children (31 August 2023). This morning Johannesburg residents woke up to the devastating news that upwards of fifty lives have been lost in a fire in an inner city building owned by the municipality. SERI deeply regrets the rising loss of lives and we express our condolences to the families of the deceased residents. We wish a speedy recovery to those in hospital. The building, known as Usindiso Shelter for Women and Children, was operating as a shelter for abused women and children until its neglect by the City, resulting in the building falling into disrepair and what the City refers to as its “hijacking”. Unfortunately, the fire at the Usindiso shelter is an example of how the City deals with its shelters, which are occupied by many of Johannesburg’s poorest and most vulnerable residents. The conditions of the shelters and transitional housing need to be urgently improved and people living in them need access to basic services. >> Read the full statement here.
- Marikana: Response to Solicitor General's Media Briefing (18 August 2023). On 17 August 2023, Solicitor General Fhedzisani Pandelani provided an update on the civil claims paid to the victims of the Marikana Massacre in a media briefing. It is unfortunate that in the briefing he made various factually inaccurate comments concerning the claims of the deceased miners’ families. The briefing further characterised the families as unreasonable and opportunistic. Such misrepresentation undermines SERI’s ongoing attempts to constructively engage with the Office of the Solicitor General. The Solicitor General appears either to be unaware of the nature and process relating to the families’ long outstanding claims or is unfortunately wilfully misrepresenting the position. >> Read the full statement here.
- 11 years later: The victims of the Marikana Massacre still await justice (10 August 2023). On 10 August 2012, mineworkers at what was then the Lonmin plc platinum mine, now Sibanye Stillwater, gathered to bring their grievances about their wages and working conditions to the attention of the mine’s management. Before the miners could reach Lonmin’s offices, they were stopped by the South African Police Service and the mine’s security guards. Despite their attempts to engage with management, Lonmin refused to communicate with the miners outside of the official trade union channels, which was the majority trade union, National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) at the time. Consequently, the miners decided to go on strike. Over the days that followed, 44 people would be killed including 34 miners who were shot and killed by the police on 16 August 2012 – a day now remembered as the Marikana Massacre. >> Read the full statement here.
- SERI condemns police use of excessive force against Slovo Park protestors (1 August 2023). SERI condemns the indiscriminate violence and excessive force used by the South African Police Service (SAPS) in the ongoing protest in Slovo Park. On 31 July 2023, SERI learned that 16-year-old Karabo Chaka was killed after he was allegedly shot in the back of the head by the police in the Slovo Park informal settlement in the south of Johannesburg. This incident occurred during the community’s protest to draw attention to the lack of water and sanitation delivery in the settlement and a stalled informal settlement upgrading process. As part of the protest, residents blocked the N12 highway and in response, the police resorted to firing rubber bullets and tear gas into the informal settlement and pursuing fleeing protesters. >> Read the full statement here.
- Durban Magistrate's Court reaches guilty verdict in Ayanda Ngila's murder trial (19 July 2023). On Monday, 17 July 2023, Khayalihle Gwabuzela (known as Khaya Ngubane) was found guilty of the murder of Ayanda Ngila, deputy chairperson of Abahlali baseMjondolo’s eKhenana branch. The Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI) welcomes the Court’s decision as a significant step towards achieving justice and fostering healing for the family of Ayanda Ngila, as well as for the entire eKhenana Commune and the Abahlali baseMjondolo movement. Khaya Ngubane’s sentencing has been set down for 24 July 2023. Ayanda Ngila was the first of four Abahlali baseMjondolo members killed in 2022, during a wave of repression targeted at the movement. >> Read the full statement here.
- SERI stands in solidarity with imprisoned Vietnamese lawyer, Mr. Bach and calls for his release (27 June 2023). Saturday, 24 June 2023 marked two years since Vietnam's leading environmental lawyer, Dang Dinh Bach ("Bach"), was wrongly imprisoned just two weeks after his son was born, due to his leadership in the anti-coal movement. Bach is a highly respected environmental justice lawyer in Vietnam who has dedicated his life to advocating for the health and well-being of marginalised communities throughout the country. He was arrested after leading a campaign to reduce Vietnam’s reliance on coal. The Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI) stands in solidarity with Mr. Bach and joins the international human rights community in calling for his immediate release. >> Read the full statement here.
- SERI condemns unlawful raids and war on the poor by City of Johannesburg’s Acting Mayor (16 May 2023). On Monday, 15 May 2023, the Acting Mayor of Johannesburg, Kenny Kunene and his team raided buildings in Johannesburg. During these unlawful raids, the team conducted searches, threatened to evict residents and were recorded demolishing one building in Windsor East all without any authorising court order. SERI is appalled by the recent actions and approach of the City of Johannesburg under the leadership of Acting Mayor which are targeted at poor people living in the inner city. At a time when the City is grappling with numerous challenges, it is disconcerting that the primary focus of the new Acting Mayor is to subject vulnerable communities to unconstitutional conduct that violate their fundamental rights to dignity and privacy. >> Read the full statement here.
- Cape Town inner city occupiers oppose eviction by the municipality (21 April 2023). On Wednesday, 19 April 2023, SERI appeared in the Cape Town High Court on behalf of occupiers of the Cape Town inner city to oppose their eviction by the Municipality. The occupiers approached SERI to oppose the imminent eviction from their homes, and to ensure that the eviction is just and equitable. The occupiers are homeless people occupying several locations in the Central Business District. >> Read the full statement here.
- SERI remembers Mthokozisi Ntumba and Abahlali's Ayanda Ngila and Siyabonga Manqele (21 March 2023). On this Human Rights Day, we remember three lives lost and lament the conditions that led to these recent deaths. This month marks the second anniversary of Mthokozisi Ntumba’s killing on 10 March 2021 and the first anniversaries of Abahlali baseMjondolo’s Ayanda Ngila and Siyabonga Manqele, who were killed on 8 and 11 March 2022, respectively. Human Rights Day is a public holiday that marks the 1960 Sharpeville massacre in which 69 people were killed and 180 people were injured protesting the unjust pass laws of the apartheid regime. Decades later, Ntumba and Manqele’s deaths are the result of reckless and overzealous policing for which justice remains scarce. Ngila’s death stands as a symbol of the brutal struggles for land nearly 30 years into South Africa’s constitutional democracy. The lives of Mthokozisi Ntumba, Ayanda Ngila and Siyabonga Manqele cannot be forgotten. Justice and accountability are urgently required. >> Read the full statement here.