Cape Town - Former president Nelson Mandela once said: “A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.”
This particular quote resonated with me as the world marked World Homeless Day on Monday. It is true that homelessness is a worldwide phenomenon and that some of the biggest economies are also battling to deal with it.
Due to increasing unemployment, poverty, the breakdown of family structures, crime and many other social ills, our major centres such as Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town are experiencing a dramatic rise in the number of homeless people.
A quick glance at rural communities, where family units are supposed to be very entrenched, would also show the same upward trajectory when it comes to homelessness.
It is therefore clear that as a country we are dealing with a serious social challenge that should be confronted head-on. Dealing with homelessness
is the responsibility of provincial governments – municipalities cannot look the other way. An integrated approach involving all layers of government, business and NGOs would go a long way towards tackling homelessness.
A long-term and sustainable plan should be implemented because our country cannot afford to have so many young and energetic people loitering in the streets of our cities. If this social challenge is left unattended, the destruction of infrastructure by homeless people desperate to survive will continue unabated.
Speaking at a stakeholder engagement meeting last week, Durban mayor Mxolisi Kaunda said they had asked law enforcement to deal with acts of criminality perpetrated by homeless people. While such action is commendable, what would really make a difference is finding creative solutions to the problem.
Raymond Perrier, the director of the Denis Hurley Centre, a non-profit organisation that has been feeding homeless people in Durban, praised the city for creating a women only shelter. However, he also slammed the municipality for being “obsessed with creating data, rather than creating solutions for the people”.
The government needs to get serious about dealing with homelessness, otherwise we can forget about eliminating crime and grime in our cities.
Cape Times