HRC listens to Hornlee's pleas

KNYSNA NEWS - In an effort to have their plight heard, members of the Hornlee community, including members of the local organisation Hornlee United, expressed their grievances during a public meeting with the Western Cape Human Rights Commission (HRC) on Wednesday 19 June.

This community's fight is one that has been fought for decades, they say, and many a Hornlee resident live in circumstances that are extremely dire.

Two of their biggest issues relate to the ongoing struggle for housing as well as the battle with Knysna Municipality regarding the installation of water meters in their homes.

Human Rights Commission
The public meeting, which was held at the Hornlee Civic Centre, was aimed at giving the community a chance to voice their grievances to the HRC, which had launched an investigation into allegations made by Hornlee United against the municipality. The case was filed with the HRC as the community and Hornlee United feel the municipality has neglected to uphold their human rights.

As part of the investigation, the HRC is required to conduct an independent in-depth look at the municipality and obtain information from all parties implicated in the case – the municipality, Hornlee United, and of course the Hornlee community. By the time of the meeting, the HRC had already conducted meetings with the municipality and Hornlee United, so this meeting was the community's chance to be heard.

Western Cape Human Rights Commission acting manager Bahia Sterris speaks at the public meeting. Photos: Blake Linder

Public meeting
The gathering was opened by former municipality council member and current Hornlee United leader Ralph Stander who in his personal capacity expressed that the community "needs houses, needs land, and no water meters".

Once Stander had had his say, other community members were given the chance to speak, and in what seemed like a barrage of complaints, a few things were made very clear: the community wants water tanks instead of water meters; it is "tired" of mayor Mark Willemse and believes foreign nationals are "taking" RDP houses meant for them. Frustration was also aired with the manner in which the municipality advertised jobs for the contract to install the water meters; with the manner in which RDP houses are allocated; and there were also questions as to where the money that was raised for the rebuilding of infrastructure following the 2017 fires has gone.

Western Cape Human Rights Commission manager Bahia Sterris speaks at the public meeting alongside Ralph Stander. Photo: Blake Linder.

At the time of publication a meeting with mayor Willemse had been held, and an article with his response to the claims above will be published by Knysna-Plett Herald.

The municipality's response
In a response to statements and allegations that were made by Hornlee residents in a public meeting last week Wednesday, mayor Mark Willemse has given his side of the story.

A public meeting between Hornlee United, the Western Cape Human Rights Commission, and the Hornlee community on 19 June led to several issues being brought to light. One bone of contention relates to the prepaid water meters which the municipality has been encouraging Knysna residents to have installed, with some residents saying they would rather have water tanks – a solution Willemse says is not viable under the current Integrated Development Plan (IDP) budget.

"It was never a part of any IDP planning, so at this stage it isn't a viable solution," he said on Monday 24 June.

"It also doesn't take into account general water usage. We need to monitor the water usage irrespective of whether people have water tanks or not."

The community also raised questions regarding "money that had been raised" following the Knysna fires in 2017, asking where that money is as they feel it should have been used to rebuild instead of, as they believe, being pocketed by members of the municipality. Willemse dispelled this notion however, saying very little of the private money raised after the fires went to the municipality. He explained that the municipality had received minimal donations and funding after the fires, with the majority coming from district and provincial government.

These monies, Willemse says, were used to rebuild key infrastructure such as the electrical grid which cost tens of millions to repair. They also had to appropriate funds towards further disaster management, by upgrading the firefighting services offered.

Willemse also responded to the Hornlee community's claims that foreign nationals were taking RDP houses meant for them, by saying that in order to receive an RDP home one has to be a South African citizen, and inviting residents to point out to the municipality those cases, if any, where foreigners received government housing.

While the majority of the issues raised at the meeting related to housing and the water meters, one was aimed at Willemse in his capacity as mayor, with a resident stating they are "tired of Willemse". Responding to this, Willemse said he's not sure in what context they're tired of him as he has only been mayor for a relatively short period. "We've already begun implementing and rolling out our housing plan, so we have been doing work for the community in my time as mayor," he said.

Knysna Mark Willemse speaking at the opening of the Knysna Oyster Festival. Photo: Elle Redman.