There is no place in our society for the treatment the City of Johannesburg is meting out to informal traders, writes Sipho Hlongwane THE City of Johannesburg has not done a good job in the way that it has handled informal traders pushed out by "Operation Clean Sweep".The operation’s aim is ostensibly to clear out illegal traders and make space for those with permission to trade in the city. The effect has been more ominous: metro police have been pushing traders off the streets in an unsavoury fashion, leading two traders’ organisations to take the matter up with the courts.Last week, the court ruled that the cases brought by the South African Informal Traders Forum and the South African National Traders Retail Alliance would have to be heard jointly next year.This means that traders who have been unable earn a living since October may have to see the rest of the year out without a source of income.After the ruling, there was looting of stores in the city centre, leading the city t...
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