Cape Town mayor demands Santaco 'immediately' stop violence
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has demanded an immediate end to violence linked to the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) strike.
Tuesday marked the sixth day since the taxi industry downed tools in the Western Cape.
The stay-away, which began as a protest against what Santaco believes to be the unfair impounding of taxis, has left at least two people dead.
More than 70 people have also been arrested for public violence.
Hill-Lewis says there will be no negotiations between the city and the taxi industry until the violence ends.
The Western Cape High Court on Monday granted the City of Cape Town and Golden Arrow Bus Services an interdict against Santaco.
The order by Judge Patrick Gamble prohibits any person, vehicle, taxi, or driver from unreasonably obstructing, interfering or blocking any vehicle on any public road.
The interdict further prohibits any person from interfering with the operations of any transportation depot.
Santaco has, however, distanced itself from the violence.
"This perception is being fueled by protestors and not members of our organisation. We can assure our members that we are hard at work to resolve any and all disputes with the City of Cape Town," it said in a statement.
The taxi council has also called on its members to conduct themselves in a peaceful and lawful manner and adhere to the interdict.
Meanwhile, the South African Federations of Trade Unions (SAFTU) says the City of Cape Town seem to have embarked on a relentless programme to liquidate minibuses.
"Traffic laws applicable to all citizens must equally apply to the taxi industry. This is, however, not the case across the country. The City of Cape Town has for years been targeting the taxi industry, harassing them with ‘unjustified’ traffic fines, refusing to grant them operating permits for new taxis and impounding of their taxis,” said the trade union federation’s spokesperson Trevor Shaku.
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