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CHRA in solidarity with Abahlali Base Mjondolo march for land and housing
Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA)
September 28, 2007

The Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) would like to express its solidarity with the landless Abahlali Basemjondolo. The group will make a march to the City authorities on the 28th of September 2007. The Association shares in the struggles of these people in the same manner it is trying to mobilize support for victims of Operation Murambatsvina who were made homeless by the Government of Zimbabwe. The Association is committed to advocating for proper housing and proper shelter for all people within the City of Harare. In this regard it sends its solidarity to the comrades who will demand their right to land and housing in South Africa. CHRA is also concerned about the pathetic or non existent social services being provided to these people. We urge Mayo Mlaba to seriously consider the demands made by the Abahlali Base Mjondolo. Listed below are the demands being made by the social group.

Abahlali baseMjondolo demands:

• An immediate moratorium on all evictions, demolitions and forced removals
• An immediate moratorium on the selling of government owned land to private developers
• An immediate moratorium on the exclusion of the poor from schools and universities
• An immediate moratorium on the eviction and harassment of street traders
• A immediate commitment to breaking with the current undemocratic form of development and to accepting the right of people to co-determine their own future.
• A commitment to the expropriation of privately owned land for collective, social housing
• The immediate building and maintenance of toilets in all settlements (for our dignity, to keep us safe from disease and to keep women safe at night)
• The immediate provision of electricity in all settlements (to stop the fires that have plagued us since the City stopped providing electricity to shackdwellers in 2001)
• The immediate provision of adequate water in all settlements
• The immediate provision of refuse removal in all settlements
• Immediate access to schools for all children including those who cannot pay fees or afford uniforms
• An immediate investigation into the rampant corruption in the drawing up of housing lists
• An immediate investigation into the activities of the notorious Pinetown gangster landlord Ricky Govender (including his violent intimidation, illegal evictions and alleged cut rate purchase of publicly owned municipal land with the aim of evicting shack dwellers and building high-cost housing for his private profit)
• An immediate investigation into the activities of the notorious police officer Glen Nayager

We also have demands to the provincial government:

• The Slum Elimination Bill is immoral and illegal. It must be scrapped immediately.
• There must be immediate action to prevent farm workers from being evicted and harassed.
• There must be immediate action to prevent the eThekwini & Msunduzi Municipalities from continuing to carry out illegal evictions
• There must be an immediate commitment to declare that the 2010 World Cup will be an '100% Evictions Free World Cup' all across the province. i.e. That there will not be any evictions of shack dwellers or streets traders

The Association is motivated by the struggles of these people and identifies with them. We are encouraged the resoluteness and courage to solve their social conditions.

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