Plastic View : an exploration of the experiences of the poor in an urban informal settlement in Pretoria

Abstract

The urban landscape is always a politicised space characterised by struggles centred on the right to control it. The major actors in these struggles are usually: government officials, developers, as well as urban and informal settlement residents. The current study explores the experiences of the inhabitants of Plastic View using the concept of ‘place’ as an analytical tool. Based on this, the study highlights the power dynamics between the state and the residents of Plastic View. It demonstrates that the state is not a helpless and innocent victim of land grabs by the poor, but that its policies and actions towards the poor have contributed significantly to the establishment of informal settlements in South Africa. In addition, the policies of the government play a significant role in the formation of informal settlements as they influence people’s access to the city and the benefits it offers. Moreover, the study demonstrates that the making of Plastic View cannot be attributed to a single cause, but rather to many actors and events. The findings indicate that there is no single sense of place that one can speak of, but that the different identities in Plastic View experience the place differently and have varied interests. The findings demonstrate the insurgency of the poor who have created their own cities under conditions not of their choosing; and thus, highlights their agency. In light of these findings, the study recommends a more collaborative approach to dealing with the housing challenge in South Africa, and that this should begin with a critical reflection of how informal settlements are thought of, and thus, treated as well as learning from the way in which residents of informal settlements use their space so that planners and the state can come up with resolutions that actually work for the people.