'This is our family home, that's why we fight' - District Six residents challenge eviction order

Six families believed to be among the last remaining residents of District Six are facing eviction from their homes in Searle Street.

A Cape Town magistrate has ordered them to vacate the church-owned cottages by 6 March after ruling the eviction lawful under the Prevention of Illegal Occupation Act. 

The properties were sold to a private developer in 2014.

Resident and journalist Mika Williams said her family has lived in the cottages for five generations and claims they were never given the option to buy the homes when the Catholic Church sold the property. 

Williams argues that the families should have been granted the right of first refusal before the sale.

"This is our family home, and that's why we fight."

Their eviction date carries historic weight, with 11 February marking both Williams’ birthday and the anniversary of District Six being declared a whites-only area in 1966. 

Described as a bittersweet irony, Williams said the community’s fight is about preserving history. 

"I think a fight like this, if it did not have merit, it would not have gone on for 15 years."

The City of Cape Town has been ordered to provide alternative accommodation.

To listen to Mika Williams in conversation with CapeTalk's Lester Kiewit, click the audio below: