Land invasions during political transition: The Wiggins saga in Cato Manor

Urban land invasions have occurred in South Africa since the 1940s. However, since 1993 a new form of invasion has developed ‐ the invasion of developed and often serviced land and dwellings. This article examines the orchestrated land and housing invasion at Wiggins in Cato Manor. The focus is on the socio‐economic and political context that led to the invasion, which was highly organised and planned. The main reasons for the invasion are the serious housing shortage in Chesterville and the racist allocation of dwellings in Wiggins by the House of Delegates. The invasion took place on the eve of elections, when the moral and political authority of the apartheid state was waning. Although there were tensions, social relations between Indian residents and African invaders in Wiggins have improved. The Cato Manor Development Association has been appointed as development agent for Cato Manor and on its shoulders lies the inordinate task of resolving the Wiggins crisis.

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Respectively National President, ANC Youth League and associate professor, Department of Geography, University of Durban‐Westville.