Some really disturbing photos of an area near Cape Town called Blikkiesdorp circulated the web yesterday, and South African authorities are running to make this go away but we will post it anyways. The name Blikkiesdorp literally means “Block Town” but is called a “Temporary Relocation Area” by the World Cup 2010 organizers. For the past 2 years the residents of the Symphony Way suburb in Cape Town have been forced to live in these steel boxes for the simple reason that World Cup fans shouldn’t not interact with or even see them. This concentration camp like community is also enforcing rules that remind us of apartheid: no cooking outside, residents cannot leave their “house” after 10pm, no construction of any kind and more.
The South African government insists that these people needed emergency housing, meanwhile according to the residents this is far from any reality. Each person is assigned a number - the only way to identify any of the 15,000 people living in Blikkiesdorp. There is no postal code for the community, something that basically means most inhabitants are unable to get a job without an official address. Hitch-hiking to work is the only way for someone to get back to the old town, and there is no hospital or school on site, meanwhile these terrible conditions are creating health issues in the community. The steel boxes are approximately 27 square meters in size and 5 to 7 people have to live together inside them. There are 3 communal bathrooms for every 100 homes, that’s just 1 toilet for every 200 residents…
Police and authorities are constantly patrolling around the area to make sure nobody can escape from this nightmare. There is very little food and since residents are banned from cooking outside, eating is a big problem and people rely on charities. The steel boxes get so hot that it’s impossible to even touch, heat strokes are very common and so is tuberculosis and HIV. The only health worker available in Blikkiesdorp is a 3 kilometre walk away, but no one is allowed to be outside after 10pm or a beating from the police is imminent. Really a shame, especially coming from South Africa, a nation that has been through so much over the years.
Please visit the Anti Eviction Campaign website for more information and some disturbing pictures of Blikkiesdorp.
Our source is this article from British photographer Gareth Kingdon that spent 2 weeks living in the community.