Concern over rough sleepers on Bo-Kaap mosque doorstep
Bo-Kaap residents as well as the caretaker of the Nurul Islam Mosque say they are dealing with an increasingly difficult situation brought on by homeless people sleeping in front of the mosque.
Despite complaints and pleas for assistance from the City of Cape Town, residents believe the issue has gotten worse since the eviction of homeless encampments in adjacent Buitengracht and at the Castle of Good Hope.
“Each morning I have to go down to clean the needles, cardboard and even there faeces on a continuous basis. As you know it's in our nature and religion to assist the less fortunate as best we can but not to clean up behind them and have to tolerate there disrespectful language. We even have a family with a 2-year-old who sleeps there,” said Azmie Najaar, the caretaker.
“I have asked the CID (central improvement district) to assist as they operate opposite the mosque but they say they are instructed to not cross the boundaries into Bo-Kaap. I begged for help as we don't want to take the law into our own hands. I have requested from our local security to keep an eye out but we seem to be fighting a losing battle if the City does not assist,” he said.
Ward Councillor Francine Higham acknowledges the issue, stating that additional funding for the Street People Unit has been allocated to enhance night operations starting next year.
“Our response has been exactly the same as per the City’s standard protocol to assisting people off the street. Furthermore, I have also allocated additional funding for our Street People Unit through my ward allocation budget for overtime so that we can conduct more operations at night when those who are sleeping rough are on our streets. This budget will be available from the beginning of next year and the Street People Unit’s operations will be conducted across all areas of Ward 77 including the Bo-Kaap.”
Ms Higham said the Urban Waste Management Directorate already have an existing schedule where the area in front of the mosque is washed down on a regular basis.
Erefaan Ramjam said Bo-Kaap residents are ready and willing to collaborate with the City to address the growing homelessness crisis in the area.
He said rather than seeking confrontation, the community is calling for meaningful partnerships and sustainable solutions to help those in need while restoring dignity and safety to public spaces like the Nurul Islam Mosque.
“We need Social services to get involved to get the homeless/vagrants off the street. It's a eyesore for tourists and general community. The smell of urine and faeces in front of a mosque is unacceptable, and just doing the same thing over and over again, chasing them away, etc, is not working. We need a plan of action. We need more spot checks from law enforcement, social development fieldworkers to come talk with them and waste management to clean on a regular basis,” Mr Ramjam said.
