The above matter has reference.
- The Women’s Legal Centre is an African Feminist legal organisation that was established in 1998 to advance the substantive rights of womxn through strategic litigation, advocacy, legal advice, and rights-based education. Its object is to develop feminist jurisprudence and policies that considers the lived realities of womxn through an intersectional and substantive equality lens. The Centre drives a feminist agenda that appreciates the impact that discrimination has on women within their different classes, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity and disability.
- The WLC works with five strategic programmes, namely, violence against womxn, relationship rights, sexual reproductive and health rights, access to land and housing and women in work which focuses on women’s rights to work in just and favourable conditions.
- The WLC welcomes this opportunity to engage with the City of Cape Town on its draft Amendment to the Streets, Public Places and the Prevention of Noise Nuisances By-law. We note with some reservation however that this call for public comment and consultation is taking place during a period where our country and City is in stage 4 of the National Disaster declaration. This has serious impact on civil societies ability to engage with the draft and its impact on them. We would therefore encourage the City to extend or pause the process of amendment to allow for proper engaged public participation.
- The WLC works with several civil society organisations, community-based organisations as well as social movements. These submissions are therefore informed by the womxn who approaches the Centre for legal support, advice and representation.
- These submissions are divided into four parts:
- (a) Part 1 seeks to provide the City with a gender lens through which to assess the Draft Amendment and which we submit the City is obligated to consider in terms of its Constitutional duty to respect, protect and promote the rights of all of the people who live in it.
- (b) Part 2 deals with the proposed Amendment and the lawful purpose which it seeks to meet.
2. (c) Part 3 speaks to the purpose and role of Law Enforcement and their mandate in respect of the Constitution and the laws related to criminal justice.
(d) Part 4 sets out WLC concerns specific to the proposed Amendment and why we consider it to be an unjustified infringement of rights in the Constitution.