EKURHULENI – Police fired rubber bullets at angry residents who hurled stones and set fire to a municipal building in a desperate attempt to prevent the mass eviction of hundreds of families from a housing complex east of Johannesburg on Tuesday.
The violent confrontation erupted when authorities moved to evict 450 families from the residential complex in Ekurhuleni, approximately 10 km from central Johannesburg, acting on a court order issued in June.
As police forced their way into the housing development, squads of officials systematically removed furniture and personal belongings from homes while shocked residents watched their lives being dismantled.
“Unfortunately, the people got wind of the eviction and closed the road. Innocent people and the police were thrown with stones and we had to retaliate to ensure that we disperse them,” said Major General Fred Kekana, deputy provincial police commissioner.
The situation escalated when someone allegedly threw a petrol bomb at the nearby Department of Home Affairs offices, prompting police to make two arrests for arson.
Residents claim government betrayal
Many displaced families expressed fury at what they described as government abandonment during South Africa’s ongoing housing crisis. Residents insisted they had been paying rent for years and believed their homes were part of legitimate government housing schemes.
“Our government is failing us. They are chasing us yet we have titles for these houses,” said 37-year-old Akhona Mbadi, a mother of four, as she watched her belongings being removed from her home.
Several residents claimed they had never received formal eviction notices despite the court order.
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Housing crisis deepens
The dramatic scenes highlight South Africa’s escalating housing crisis, which has persisted despite government efforts to address apartheid-era inequalities. After taking power in 1994, the ANC government launched the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) to provide subsidised housing for previously disadvantaged black South Africans.
By 2017, nearly 14% of South African households lived in RDP or government-subsidised homes, according to official statistics. However, the country’s homelessness problem has exploded, with the number of homeless people surging from 13 000 in 1996 to more than 55 700 in 2022.
Most homeless individuals are concentrated in Gauteng province, which includes Johannesburg and serves as the country’s economic hub, attracting migrants from across Africa seeking better opportunities.
The Tuesday eviction is one of the many examples of the complex challenges facing South Africa’s post-apartheid government as it struggles to balance legal requirements with the desperate housing needs of millions of citizens still waiting for adequate shelter nearly three decades after democracy.
