Cape Town - There are about 800 children roaming the streets of Cape Town, according to activists for the homeless.
Community forums and residents of the Atlantic Seaboard have penned an urgent open letter to the MEC for Social Development about their concerns about aggressiveness, drug abuse and muggings that continue to rise.
According to the City of Cape Town, a census report of 2022 said there were 6600 people sleeping on the streets.
The census also revealed that there were 55 719 homeless people in the country at the time, with 39 052 being men and 16 667 women.
Venetia Orgill, dubbed “Angel of the Garden”, who feeds the homeless in the CBD and who often assists in re-homing and rehabilitating drug addicts, said they believed there were about 800 homeless children in Cape Town.
In an open letter to Western Cape Social Development MEC Jaco Londt, the residents said the situation of street children had become a huge concern where elderly residents were often mugged, harassed and confronted with drug abuse.
The letter said the department had done nothing to alleviate residents’ concerns by assisting street children by providing services mandated by the department.
Peter Flentov, of the Atlantic Seaboard Forum, wrote: “I understand that earlier this year the department eliminated the social worker position dedicated to street children in the area.
“There are a significant number of children that are a chronic problem on the Atlantic Seaboard. Some are known to live on the streets and in homeless encampments such as The Kraal in the Bo-Kaap, but many are brought in from areas such as Kraaifontein and Kalksteenfontein to beg on the streets of the Atlantic Seaboard.
“They are present in the area on a daily or near daily basis, and residents regularly report seeing them sniffing what is assumed to be glue from packets. Frequently they hang out in groups of five to 10 individuals and harass and threaten vulnerable people, especially the elderly and women.
“It has gotten to the point where many of the residents at Sea Point Place are too scared to walk outside the facility. Sea Point Place is one of the Cape Peninsula Organization for the Aged’s largest retirement facilities, and the street children typically congregate at the traffic lights outside the facility’s entrance. Some of the children have been known to become threatening and aggressive when people refuse to give them money.”
Flentov said there had been a number of incidents this year where street children had been involved in chain snatching and other robberies.
“In short, the street children pose a clear and present danger to residents and visitors on the Atlantic Seaboard,” he said.
“But the problem does not stop there. There is little doubt that unless urgent interventions are taken the street children will become habitual criminals when they become adults. In short, they represent a lost generation.
“Street children on the Atlantic Seaboard, as elsewhere, are subjected to neglect and abuse, as defined in the Children’s Act 38 0f 2005 and are therefore children in need, in terms of the act. The act further mandates that the Western Cape Provincial Government is responsible for providing the services needed by children in need.”
Flentov said he urged the department to reveal what their plan was.
Londt in his response said they were reconciling their social worker numbers to the area.
“Firstly, the Western Cape Department of Social Development refutes the author’s claim that we have ‘eliminated’ the social worker position that works with street children.
“The post was left vacant after the social worker received another opportunity elsewhere.
“We are in the process of filling the position. In the interim, there are other DSD social workers assisting with the issue.
“The department’s social workers are working with the City of Cape Town to assist with removing children from the street where possible.”
Londt urged residents who encountered criminal acts by minors to open a criminal case in order to empower the police and department to intervene in terms of the Child Justice Act.
“Minors who are arrested can be placed into the department’s secure care facilities, where they will receive the necessary developmental and rehabilitative programmes, and convicted minors’ criminal records will be expunged when they become adults provided that they do not re-offend,” he said.
Londt, together with the head of department, Dr Robert Macdonald, and other departmental officials met with the City’s Sub-Council 16 councillors to discuss issues of concern, including children living on the streets.
Orgill said the reality was that street children were victims of society and needed assistance from government departments.
“Our street kids are living dangerous lives on the streets and feel they are thrown to the swines in every way,” she said.
“They feel they must fend for themselves all their lives. Once they get to two to three months of sleeping rough they don't want to go home to live under family rules. The department needs to step up and work closer with these kids.
“They also fall into traps of gangs on the streets and on that, they snatch chains and bags. They need to earn their keep on the streets and sniffing glue is their only way to cope.”
In July 2024, Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis officially opened the City’s new 300-bed Safe Space shelter to help more homeless people off the streets in central Cape Town.
The facility is based in Ebenezer Road in Green Point and is the fifth Safe Space to be opened by the City and takes the total beds to 1 070 across these facilities.
Weekend Argus approached ward councillor Nicola Jowell on residents' concerns but did not get a response by deadline.