The National Association of Democratic Lawyers (Nadel) has set up a team of attorneys and advocates to challenge the City of Cape Town's by-laws targeting 'poor and homeless' people. In a statement issued yesterday, Nadel said the by-laws, which prohibited people from erecting shelters or sleeping overnight in certain areas, was 'tyrannical and oppressive', Legalbrief reports. 'It prohibits anyone from "in any way" obstructing the pedestrian traffic on a sidewalk or depositing, packing, unpacking or leaving any goods in a public place. This could attract a fine up to R300. The poor can be charged and fined up to R1 500 for lighting a fire in a public place during the harsh winter ... .' Nadel said the by-laws have lost their context and place in a democratic constitutional society ... and affected street vendors, street children, beggars and homeless people. According to Nadel, the SA Human Rights Commission has reportedly received more than 100 complaints relating to the impact of the by-laws on the poor and vulnerable. Nadel rejected the city's explanation that the by-laws were to maintain public order, public safety and prevent crime. Nadel will challenge the validity, relevance and constitutionality of these by-laws and the related consequences for our constitutional dispensation, it said in the statement. According to the Daily Maverick, the by-laws in focus were not new. It relates to Streets, Public Places and the Prevention of Noise Nuisances and has been in place since 2007. It was not specifically drafted to target people living on the streets, although those are the people most likely to feel its impact.

Nadel yesterday also said it would apply to be an amicus curiae in a case brought by the Centre for Child Law against the Minister of Basic Education in 2017. The case deals with the right of undocumented children to access education. 'In order to access the right to basic education children have to have the necessary legal documentation that must be submitted to the school for admission – birth certificates and identity documents need to be submitted and in the case of asylum seekers, refugees or migrants further legal documentation is required.' However, Nadel said in many cases children did not have the necessary documentation and this should not be a barrier to access fundamental rights, especially considering that statistics show that 43% of births in sub-Saharan Africa are unregistered. 'It unfairly prejudices rural children whose families are unable to access services in rural areas.'