Residents call for Malacca Road settlement demolition

THE brutal murder of James Quinlin in his Durban North home recently has prompted local residents to call for the ‘removal’, and in some cases ‘demolition’, of the Malacca Road informal settlement. The settlement has been around for about 20 years in the Glenhills area and is home to more than 300 people. Many residents have blamed the informal settlement for a spate of robberies in the area which ended in the murder of the 79-year-old almost two weeks ago.

A resident who did not want to be named said the crime situation had become unacceptable.

“Something needs to be done – the crime rate is spiraling out of control and I believe it is because of the Malacca Road informal settlement. We should bulldoze the houses and get rid of the people there. People in the area are living in fear, and most, if not all of us, have been robbed. The residents of Glenhills need to stand together and get rid of that informal settlement once and for all,” he said.

Other residents have reacted similarly on Northglen News‘s Facebook page, citing the informal settlement as a haven for criminals.

However, Robin Candy, chairman of the Greenwood Park Community Policing Forum, said there was no evidence supporting the argument.

“In the 31 years of living in Durban North I’ve never known of any house breakers, violent criminals or murderers living in the settlement. They may be involved in petty crime, and we know some of the residents sell dagga and alcohol. The call for the demolition of the settlement will not solve the crime situation and will only cause racial friction. Some of these calls are being made out of emotion and are not based in reality,” Candy said.

Ward councillor, Heinz de Boer, echoed the CPF chairman’s comments, describing the bulldozing and demolishing of shacks as ‘militant’ and ‘irresponsible’.

“Crime in the Glenhills and Glen Anil areas has always been blamed on the Malacca Road informal settlement. I can say with great certainty that this is not true. Yes, there is crime, I have no doubt. But residents need to be careful about generalising and saying all the informal settlement residents are responsible for a spike in crime.

“The proposal to demolish the shacks cannot be supported in any shape or form. Bear in mind that some of the biggest criminals have used affluent areas, such as La Lucia and uMhlanga, to hide in,” De Boer said.