Sea View Cemetery: A community's struggle for dignity and housing
Image: Sibonelo Ngcobo/Independent Newspapers
LIVING in shacks atop gravesites is the lot of a desperate community of 400 people inhabiting the Sea View Cemetery on Coedmore Road in Durban.
Their plight caught the attention of the KwaZulu-Natal Human Settlements Department that is attempting to have them relocated to formal houses and restore respect for the deceased.
Spokesperson for the department, Ndabezinhle Sibiya, said the Sea View situation underscored the desperation of some communities that resorted to inhabiting sacred spaces.
Those who call the cemetery home have built their dwellings in all the available space. In some instances tombstones are found in some shacks. It's common practice for inhabitants to walk on graves, children play on them, and some even sleep on them.
'The MEC, Siboniso Duma, has stated that it is incorrect for people to live on top of graves,' Sibiya revealed, emphasising the significant cultural implications of such a situation.
"We must remember the spirit of ubuntu, as cemeteries are regarded as sacred spaces."
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This sentiment reflects a broader call for dignity and respect towards those who have passed away, while also confronting the pressing housing crisis faced by many South Africans.
The emergence of shacks around the Sea View Cemetery, particularly in the adjacent Kennville informal settlement, has prompted urgent action from the government.
Sibiya acknowledged the acute land scarcity problem that complicates these efforts, yet affirmed that the integrity of cemeteries cannot be compromised.
In pursuit of sustainable housing solutions, local traditional leaders in Inanda have offered land for new construction, although critical funding of approximately R1.7 billion is needed for essential bulk infrastructure improvements.
Construction is already underway on a separate site in Cornubia, with an investment of R500 million allocated for housing development.
Over the weekend, MEC Duma directed their Head of Department, Max Mbili, along with the eThekwini Municipality, to expedite the profiling of families residing in Sea View Cemetery, so that they could be relocated to the Cornubia site.
Duma was mindful that since the dawn of democracy in 1994, efforts to provide housing for the needy people of Sea View had evolved significantly but with many complex challenges.
'After 1994, the government prioritised housing for those living in the area since 1981,' Duma said.
He noted there were past initiatives led by prominent figures in the early 2000s, aimed at relocating families from this community to improved housing in Welbedacht, Chatsworth.
However, the MEC lamented the unfortunate reality that some families returned to the vicinity, perpetuating new informal settlements.
Sibiya said the current conditions at Sea View Cemetery were troubling, with families crammed into makeshift shacks.
'It's a troubling situation that we are working to address,' he said.
Sea View resident Doris Zeka, 50, said she moved from Kokstad to th
e cemetery about 30 years ago.
She said many residents were from the Eastern Cape.
Zeka acknowledged that living in a cemetery was 'not okay', but they were desperate.
'We don't have the means to leave and rent elsewhere,' Zeka said.
She said her informal structure is built around a grave, and they placed a table on it.
'We want to leave because of the heat. It's too hot here,' Zeka said.
On service delivery, she said they have illegally connected electricity, which officials disconnected at times.
Zeka said the last time officials visited the area was last year, and they took photographs.
Another resident, Buyelwa Ncedo from Tsolo, Eastern Cape, said she arrived in the area in 1995. She said that relatives of those buried in the graves they built on top of, realised it was a hopeless situation.
'They got tired because they realised there was no way they could see their relatives' graves,' Ncedo said.
She said they had never attacked them or taken any action against them because they realised the place had become their home.
The eThekwini Municipality's spokesperson, Gugu Sisilana, clarified that the Sea View Cemetery did not fall under municipal jurisdiction; the urgency of the situation has prompted outreach efforts.
'It is important to clarify that the Seaview Cemetery is not owned or managed by eThekwini Municipality,' said Sisilana.
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One of many gravesites of persons from the community that died as early as the 1940s. Image: Supplied THE families of those who were buried in the Seaview Cemetery are hopeful they will soon be able to visit the gravesites of their loved ones, after the land was invaded by informal dwellers more than 20 years ago. Some of the make-shift homes were built on top of gravesites. Siboniso Duma, the MEC for Transport and Human Settlements in KwaZulu-Natal, said graveyards were sacred places and should be respected. He said the department was in the process of profiling the informal dwellers with the aim of relocating them. 'Our hearts are with the families of the departed souls that should be resting in peace in the cemetery. We recall that residents were forcefully removed from the area as a result of the Group Areas Act. Under a democratic government, they must be allowed to reconnect with their loved ones,' said Duma. Video Player is loading. 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Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Informal dwellings have been erected next to or on top of gravesites at the Seaview Cemetery. Image: Supplied He said Max Mbili, the head of department, department officials, and a team of community based workers were in the process of profiling people living in the cemetery. 'While we understand that people are moving from far-flung areas to eThekwini in search of socio-economic opportunities and that there is a shortage of houses and land. We call on communities to respect the departed soul. Cemeteries are sacred places where the dead must be allowed to rest in peace. 'We now want to establish the identity of the people there, whether they received houses in the past in Welbedacht and sold them or rented them out. We also want to ensure that only South Africans are registered as per the government policy.' Duma added that the department supported the upcoming National Dialogue, which was spearheaded by President Cyril Ramaphosa. 'We will need to have our own dialogue in Seaview, Chatsworth, and uMlazi, among other areas. We must work together to ensure we allow families in the area or those who have graves on farms, and were forcefully removed, can go back to the graves to honour the deceased and connect with their heritage. Many former residents that were forced to leave their childhood homes for Chatsworth, due to the Group Areas Act, said they were unable to visit the gravesites due to restrictions at the time, and later the building of informal dwellings. Krishna Naidoo, 85, said the cemetery, initially known as the Seaview Vishnu Cemetery, was opened by his grandfather's uncles. 'They came to South Africa as businessmen, and not as indentured labourers. They formed the Seaview and District Hindoo Cemetery Trust and requested the authority of the city council to use the land as a burial ground in the late 1930s. 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