Unhoused individuals' experiences of being policed in Cape Town

Ackermann, Jo

Unhoused individuals' experiences of being policed in Cape Town

Thesis / Dissertation

2024

Publisher

University of Cape Town

Department

Department of Public Law

Faculty

Faculty of Law

Abstract

The present study departed from a conversation in the South African literature on the discriminatory application of by-laws to criminalise vagrancy-related behaviour and displace the unhoused. A comparative lack of interest has been given to how exactly the unhoused experience being policed, and whether this can be explained by by-law enforcement. To address this, focus groups were conducted with 28 formerly unhoused individuals who have lived on the streets of Cape Town and are now housed by community-based organisation, Streetscapes. Participants were asked about experiences of being policed, and their understandings of officers' behaviour. Their responses indicate a range of experiences, from brutal, humiliating and unjust encounters that were indicative of a lack of respect for the unhoused on the part of law enforcement, to kind and fair, rooted in empathy for their situation. The varied nature of the incidents goes beyond the enforcement of by-laws and reflects the views and choices of officers (and the residents and politicians from whom they sometimes receive instructions). The implications of these findings are therefore that policing unhoused people needs to be understood both within and outside of a legal framework. This should nuance the debate on how best to help the unhoused enjoy their rights, as an exclusive focus on reviewing discriminatory legislation may ignore factors such as personal bias and a willingness to use violence by law enforcement, and a lack of broader governmental, institutional and public support. Paying greater attention to this could ultimately shape interventions and thus more effectively address the homelessness problem in Cape Town (and perhaps elsewhere).

Keywords

Public Law

Reference:

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Masters

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