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Lawyer says Cape Town breaks order at Wingfield settlement

Published

Lawyer Caitlin Turok says City of Cape Town law enforcement officers stayed at the Wingfield informal settlement in Maitland on Sunday, a day after an interim order stopped demolitions. The city says it is protecting private land from a mass invasion.

Turok acts for Wingfield residents through the legal organisation Ndifuna Ukwazi. She says the interim order also blocks the city from stopping residents rebuilding their shacks. She said: "only the Ndabeni Communal Property Trust can obtain an eviction order to remove my clients."

The city says it stepped in to protect land owned by the Ndabeni Communal Property Trust from a mass land invasion in Kensington. JP Smith, the city's Mayco Member for Safety and Security, said six community members with a court order had permission to build on site on Sunday. He said about 50 more people without a court order joined them and began to put up structures.

The matter is due back in court on 26 November 2026. The court will then decide whether the interim order should be made permanent.

Key facts

Who
Caitlin Turok (Lawyer representing Ndifuna Ukwazi, acting for Wingfield informal settlement…); JP Smith (City of Cape Town Mayco Member for Safety and Security); Ndifuna Ukwazi (Legal organisation representing the residents); City of Cape Town (Municipality whose law enforcement officers were at the settlement)
What
Residents' lawyer Caitlin Turok says City of Cape Town law enforcement officers remained at the Wingfield informal settlement on Sunday, a day after an interim order stopped demolitions and blocked residents from rebuilding shacks. The city says it stepped in to protect land owned by the Ndabeni Communal Property Trust from a mass land invasion in Kensington; the matter is due back in court on…
When
2 November 2026
Where
Maitland, Cape Town, Kensington
Status
Reported

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