The murder of Ayanda Ngila is an assault on us all
The cold-blooded murder of Abahlali baseMjondolo leader Ayanda Ngila, while he was fixing water pipes to a food garden in the eKhanana Commune near Durban, is an assault on SA’s democracy and Constitution, and on every one of us. It calls for statements and acts of solidarity not only to demand justice for Ngila, but in support of the rights of SA’s poor and marginalised to organise, protest and take actions (including occupying land) in support of their fundamental rights.
On 13 March, Abahlali leader S’bu Zikode told the media that 20 of the movement’s activists have been killed in recent years. The night before he spoke, yet another supporter, Siyabonga Manqele, was murdered, this time Abahlali alleges by masked policemen during a raid on the home of Abahlali member Thandeka Sithunsa.
According to a statement by Abahlali, during this raid on the “eNkanini Occupation”:
“The number plates had been removed from the police cars, and their faces were masked. They had someone with them, also masked, who took them to particular homes.
“The residents report that they thought that the police officers were not local, and that they heard them saying that they had a list of 10 people to arrest.”
These allegations bear out a statement by former Constitutional Court judge Zak Yacoob, who told mourners that Ayanda is “now with many, many others whose lives were taken”. Yacoob mentioned Chris Hani and Victoria and Griffiths Mxenge, but added that “their lives were taken by white people; our lives are now being taken by our people”.
Abahlali’s “crime” is taking direct action to ensure people’s rights to housing, land, food and dignity. It acts where national, provincial and local governments have unlawfully failed to fulfil their constitutional responsibilities.
As continually pointed out by Zikode, Abahlali is a disciplined and nonviolent organisation, whose claims to land have been recognised by the courts in judgments.
But surely rights to food, land, housing and dignity are moral and not just legal issues? Surely rights must be justiciable on the streets, not just through the courts? In the words of health activist Paul Farmer: “The poverty of the poor is not a call to generous relief action, but a demand that we go and build a different social order.”
Two worlds: safe and violent civic spaces
The murder of Ayanda Ngila reminds us, again, that there are two worlds in South Africa, including two worlds for civil society organisations.
In one world, mainly the formal suburbs and business and academic districts of big cities, there is respect for the right to protest and campaign for a cause.
But there is another more populous world, found on the other side of unresolved apartheid spatial divisions, where activists are threatened and, increasingly, murdered.
One wonders whether it is because Abahlali is made up of shack dwellers on the margins of society that our society overlooks the murder of 20 human rights activists? What would the response be if those being targeted worked for a university think-tank or a well-funded NGO?
In December 2021, South Africa was downgraded to “obstructed” by Civicus Monitor, a global research collaboration that rates and tracks fundamental freedoms in 197 countries and territories. According to its report, People Power Under Attack 2021, “the violent dispersal of protesters, deterioration of LGBTQI+ rights, and attacks on public figures who raise questions about accountability, led to the downgrade”.
While the South African media and business community gets fixated by downgradings by ratings agencies, it seems less concerned by how our human rights record is viewed. The downgrading passed almost unnoticed. Yet, Ngila’s murder shows that the downgrading is for good reason. The notion that South Africa is a safe space for civil society and human rights activism is wrong. Human rights protection must be measured by the experience of the most vulnerable among us, not by the activist elite space.
Since Ngila’s murder there has been an outpouring of messages of support, nationally and internationally. But it should also be a wake-up call. Put another way, if all of civil society does not do more to work hand in hand with poor communities in struggles for land, health, education and dignity, this space will be captured by gangsters. It will be surrendered to criminals in the ANC and groups like Operation Dudula who use intimidation and violence on behalf of covert political agendas. Ayanda Ngila’s murder should therefore be a turning point. These are the reasons we should honour Ayanda Ngila and all find ways to show solidarity with the vision and activities of Abahlali baseMjondolo.