Examining government’s approach to housing: an analysis of Villiersdorp in the Theewaterskloof municipality

Abstract

South Africa has not been able to deal with its past in a socially just restorative way. This plays out sharply in questions of housing and “homelessness” against a history of oppression through settler colonialism, the migrant labour system and capitalist exploitation of black labour. The indigenous peoples of Africa and Southern Africa have increasingly raised their voices about the incomplete nature of the freedoms since 1994. This thesis looks at a case study of a farming town where widespread levels of informality, homelessness, and exploitation and land occupations are on the increase. Municipal governance and housing policies have come under enormous pressure as economic contradictions intensify. Farmworkers have been evicted from farms. Violent protests over housing places the spotlight on governments’ role in developing policies to effectively address this challenge and provide lasting solutions. Housing development has been slow and insufficient and land reform efforts has officially been deemed unsuccessful. Rapid migration into the area since the late 1980s has changed the composition of local communities that demand to be recognised while old order property and farmers continue to accumulate wealth. This results in conflict and endless unresolved debates. The municipal bureaucrats are caught between justice and economic growth pivoted on white owned farms.