Cape Town city officials have written letters in response to the removal of sanitation facilities for refugees.
The letters to the department of Home Affairs and UN High Commission for Refugees, ask them to reinstate sanitation facilities at the so-called Paint City site in Bellville.
Over the weekend, the supplier of the showers and toilets removed them after the U-N-H–C-R’s contract with it expired, last month.
The City says the national department of Public Works is responsible for moving the refugees to the site.
In October 2020, the department requested that the City take over running the site, but the City refused.
This led the UNHCR to intervene and provide the facilities as an interim measure.
Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services, Zahid Badroodien, says their responsibility is to ensure health protocols are adhered to at the site.
“ The City of Cape Town is committed to support all initiatives to resolve this matter. But, must categorically state that the responsibility of assisting the refugees through the national Refugees Act, remains the responsibility of national government”.
