SA’s slum dwellers losing patience
Rising protests and land invasions signal people have had enough
As the government plans to expropriate land from white farmers, slum dwellers are also hungry for land reform, experts say, as protests, illegal invasions and evictions signal rising inequality in rapidly growing cities. Towns and cities remain racially divided more than 20 years after the end of apartheid. Although black people have since migrated to cities for jobs and better opportunities, economic inequality has worsened, said Geoff Bickford, a programme manager at think-tank South African Cities Network, which promotes urban development. "The most lucrative urban land is still in the hands of the minority — be it the state or previously advantaged white individuals or black individuals who are now moving into the middle class," he said. The government aims to accelerate rural land reform before next year’s parliamentary elections, as Julius Malema’s EFF has pushed for land expropriation from the white minority without compensation. However, urban conflicts over land also need t...
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