Anger over Bonela land grab

Residents are up in arms over the influx of shack dwellers in a forest area next to the suburb

LAND grabs have spiralled out of control in Bonela, Mayville. Residents have called for municipal leaders to intervene as more than 500 shacks have mushroomed in neighbouring bush following a court victory for the shack dweller movement, the Abahlali basemjondolo Women’s League.

The Durban High Court last month found that the eviction of 242 shacks in the area in August last year was unlawful.

Bonela residents have complained that the land invasions have become more intense since the interim court order was issued.

The affected areas were situated between Blinkbonnie Road, Wiggins Road, Carlow Road and Carnforth Drive.

The residents said the court order was being misinterpreted Bonela residents are seeking other options to prevent land invasion in the forest next to their neighbourhood. to mean that permission had been granted for all and sundry to invade the land. The situation had become volatile as invaders and residents were fighting over who was entitled to the land.

Trees in the forest have been hacked down to make way for shacks.bonela resident Melissa Govender said they have taken their plight to the local ward councillor and deputy mayor Fawzia Peer, but to no avail.

“Now we are living in fear without help. The local councillor does not have the resources and authority to fight this. We are hoping the (deputy) mayor may help us. We are afraid to leave our homes because our area is full of unknown people with bush knives, machetes and even guns,” said Govender.

“The area has been home to monkeys, mongoose and many birds, including our national bird, the blue crane. I have lived here for most of my life and there have never been any persons living in that forest,” she said.

The situation resulted in protests this week, as groups of people blocked the roads with burning tyres, trees, boulders and garbage.

This after members of the Community Policing Forum in Bonela had tried to stop new invaders from moving into the forest.

“They burned our power box, which resulted in us not having electricity for two days,” said Govender.

“They also burst the water main, leaving us without water for almost a week,” she said.

DA ward councillor Warren Burne said they were engaging the office of the mayor to find a way forward.

“The residents are particularly unhappy about the apparent inability of the land invasion unit, metro police, SAPS Cato Manor and the public order policing unit to prevent the invasion and the occupation of the whole piece of land over the last week or so.

“The perpetrators are acting with impunity and without repercussions,” said Burne.