The City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality and Others v Occupiers of Portion 971 of the Farm Randjesfontein No 405 and Others

The respondents were 71 unlawful occupiers of Portion 971 of the Farm Randjesfontein No 405 in Midrand, owned by Rycloff-Bellegings (Pty) Ltd. The occupiers lived in informal structures and earned a livelihood as waste pickers, collecting, sorting and storing recyclable materials from nearby industrial sites. Rycloff sought eviction under s 4 of the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act 19 of 1998 (PIE) to proceed with a major commercial redevelopment. The Gauteng Division of the High Court granted eviction and ordered the City of Johannesburg to provide temporary emergency accommodation (TEA), on condition that the accommodation be located where occupiers could lawfully and safely continue their waste-picking activities. The City appealed, contending that consideration of the occupiers’ means of earning a living fell outside s 4(7) of PIE and that waste-picking constituted an unlawful commercial activity.

The appeal was dismissed with costs, save that paragraph 2(b) of the High Court’s order was amended. The City of Johannesburg was directed to provide temporary emergency accommodation to the first to seventy-first occupiers within 60 days of the Supreme Court of Appeal’s order.

The judgment affirms that an occupier’s ability to earn a living is a relevant consideration in eviction proceedings under the PIE Act. It strengthens the link between housing rights, dignity, and socio-economic survival, particularly for vulnerable groups. The case clarifies that temporary emergency accommodation must be adequate in context and not undermine livelihoods, and it reinforces the obligation of municipalities to act reasonably when preventing homelessness.