Homelessness remains a significant challenge in the eThekwini Municipality with over 200 men currently living at the Molyneux Tent Shelter in North Beach.
On 29 July, North Beach DA PR councillor, Sharmaine Sewshanker was summoned to the shelter by two men who claimed they had been forcibly removed by security. Sewshanker met with a team from the eThekwini Safer City Unit and ANC Councillor Sibusiso Lushaba, who were there to oversee the shelter’s status. The men told Sewshanker that after questioning the influx of residents, particularly those engaged in criminal activities and drug use, they were asked to leave. They expressed their discontent at being forced to live under a tree near the shelter, enduring harsh weather conditions, according to Sewshanker.
Bongani Xulu, one of the affected men, appealed to Sewshanker for help in their plight.
The eThekwini Municipality’s spokesperson, Gugu Sisilana, noted that the shelter enforces specific rules for residents.
“Individuals failing to comply after cautions are removed by the city’s security and Safer Cities personnel.
“The eThekwini Municipality has initiated various programmes to assist homeless individuals, including employment opportunities, skills development, ID applications, reunification services, and drug rehabilitation programmes.
“However, it is mentioned that the city does not have a specific mandate to address homelessness, and there is currently no national policy guiding the city’s interventions,” said Sisilana.
Sewshanker said the issue of homelessness was “far from being resolved”, especially when people are being chased back
into the streets.She voiced concerns about plans to relocate individuals from tent shelters to a permanent structure in Illovu, emphasising
transportation challenges and the need to address homelessness more comprehensively.
“We raised the issue about it. We just moving people from the tent shelter into a more permanent formal shelter without solving or resolving the current issue of homelessness on the street.
“We were told that they are just going to close the two shelters down and those people will be moved to that 400 facility. From my understanding and from the oversight that we did as a committee, I found that there is more than 250, I think 275 in the Molyneux shelter and there’s about 250 in the other shelter. So, it’s not the best solution ever. Yes, we appreciate the city is providing some sort of relief, but it’s not a solution because you’re just taking people from one informal facility and you’re moving them into a more formal facility,” she said.
Sewshanker criticised the lack of a homeless policy in the city emphasising the need to differentiate between homeless individuals with varying needs, including those struggling with addiction and mental health issues, versus those in genuine need of assistance.
“The DA has always been asking the city for a homeless policy because there’s no enforcement for the homeless. What happens to the homeless. This is not really a solution and that is why we abstained as the DA caucus in the safety and securitycommittee.
“We abstained on that item saying we need more clarity on the creation of the Ilovo homeless facility. We need more details, we need the cost and we need to know how are we going to maneuver people out of the city into a facility like Ilovo,” she said.
Sewshanker added that “another issue” on North beach area was that residents are complaining saying that having a shelter in the area is an eyesore. “The residents say it was dropping the value of their properties and their apartments. I just feel that eThekwini is shifting the goalposts without actually resolving the issue.” she concluded.
