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On 30 September and 7 October, SERI participated in the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA) training hosted Solidarity Center. The first session, conducted on 30 September, brought together approximately 50 physical attendees, with additional participants joining online. The session was attended by a number of government stakeholders. SERI was represented by Thulani Nkosi, Grace Gomba and Thando George. Notably, representatives from domestic workers unions, including Izwi Domestic Workers Union (Izwi), South African Domestic Service and Allied Workers Union (SADSAWU), and United Domestic Workers of South Africa (UDWOSA), also joined the event. 

The first session, led by the National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH) and Professor David Rees, focused on exploring medical concepts and their application in the context of worker compensation, specifically within the domestic work sector.

The second session, which took place on 7 October at the Holiday Inn in Johannesburg, brought together approximately 30 in-person attendees, with others participating online. George Kahn of Richard Spoor Inc attorneys led the session.  He delved into the legal provisions and requirements of the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act concerning the social security rights of workers and their dependents. George Kahn's presentation also addressed the scope of coverage under COIDA, the benefits it offers, the triggering conditions for these benefits, and the methodologies for calculating them. 

On October 14, 2023, a monumental mass demonstration unfolded in Johannesburg, marking an overwhelming success. Approximately three thousand activists representing a diverse coalition of working-class community civics, housing advocates, socialist movements, civil society, inner-city residents, and victims of the Marshalltown fire came together for a common cause. This demonstration was a resolute stand against poverty, housing injustice, and xenophobia, addressing key issues plaguing the city.

The march commenced from the Hillbrow Recreational Centre, where people started gathering at 9:00 AM and began marching at 10:00 AM. The procession traversed many areas of the Johannesburg Central Business District, including 80 Albert Street, the site of a tragic incident where 77 lives were lost, survivors sustained severe injuries, and many lost their homes and livelihoods. The march concluded at the Gauteng Legislature, responsible for turning the national housing budget into real accommodation. The protesters dispersed at 2:00 PM.

• Download the full report here. 

On 12 October 2023, the Daily Maverick published an op-ed by SERI's Yongeza Mbimbi entitled, 'Protests are a powerful tool of democratic expression and a legitimate form of political participation'.

The op-ed discusses the importance of protest especially for marginalised groups and communities that often go unheard. In it, Yongeza Mbimbi discusses the protest by Slovo Park's informal settlement residents that resulted in a community meeting with Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi but also resulted in the killing of 16-year-old Karabo Chaka, allegedly by the police. The community turned to protest as a last resort after many years of engaging the City of Johannesburg and years of many broken promises by public officials from all levels of government. He writes:

"to understand more fully the nature of protests, we need to ask why communities protest in the first place, and why other means of engagement have been ineffective. It is also necessary to question why protests are often met with a violent state response.

In the case of Slovo Park, the protest was an expression of a community’s deep-seated frustration with the lack of basic services and stagnant development after decades of false promises and fruitless engagement."

The op-ed addresses some of the misconceptions about protest and reflects of their contribution to bringing about social change. These misconceptions and the history of protest in South Africa are the subject of a new SERI publication, 'Listen to Us! Reflections on Protest in Democratic South Africa' which was launched on 26 September 2023.

The publication is adapted from a protest exhibition entitled “Insurgent Citizens: Reflections on Protest in Democratic South Africa”  which provided a compelling visual narrative that both examined the history and practice of protest, as well as challenged popular assumptions and myths associated with it. The exhibition was put together by the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI) and the Nelson Mandela Foundation in March 2019. 

• Read the full op-ed here.
• Download the publication here.

On Sunday, 10 September 2023, the Sunday Times published an op-ed by SERI's Nkosinathi Sithole entitled, 'Fire proves the apartheid ethos of the Central Pass Office hasn't died'. In the piece, Sithole reflects on the devastating fire that took place at the building at 80 Albert Street on 31 August which claimed the lives of 77 people.

Sithole also tracks the history of the building, which under apartheid, it housed the Department of Non-European Affairs' Central Pass Office. He writes: "the office from which the "dompas", which controlled the movement of black people in South Africa, was issued and that was responsible for authorising the expulsion of "unworthy black people" from Johannesburg, denying them a place in the inner city."

The building later served as a shelter, named Usindiso Women's Shelter and was leased by the NGO Usindiso Industries from 2001. However, the building fell into disrepair like many other shelters and transitional housing due to neglect by the City.

In the op-ed, Sithole argues that: "The city's response and attitude towards the surviving residents of Usindiso Women's Shelter and those of other similar occupied buildings espouses the same apartheid systematic technique to rid the inner city of poor people who cannot afford the standard of a gentrified city.

• Access the full op-ed here.